LILIES ON MARS AT LEE’S PALACE – APRIL 16, 2014

Dream pop duo Lilies on Mars made their Toronto debut at Lee’s Palace, on tour in support of Fanfarlo. The London-based pair of Lisa Masia and Marina Cristofalo were hypnotizing in their vocal delivery and approach to songwriting, crafting interesting melodies and ethereal tunes that floated out over an unfortunately fairly sparse crowd.

There is, however, room for them to grow, specifically when it comes to cleaning up their instrumental lines. There were a couple of tense moments where you couldn’t help but wonder if they’d hit their marks and have their intersecting guitars, synths, and pre-recorded elements come together. Thankfully they did – but their comfort and on-stage presence is still a work in progress, made all the more distinguishable when the band was joined for their last two songs by Fanfarlo’s Cathy Lucas. Even though Lucas’ primary instrument isn’t a bass, she presented herself in a far more at ease manner than Lilies On Mars could achieve.

Nevertheless, they’ll be interesting ones to watch when they figure it all out (and I’m pretty sure they will.) But for now, you can tell they’re still in the phase where being in North America is all shiny and new. This isn’t a bad thing – just a note that they’ll need to put on a coat of polish to truly push themselves into an over-saturated American market.

Thanks to Live Nation Ontario for media access.