Citizen and Turnover Tour hits Toronto and I got to watch the whole show go down at Toronto’s very own, MOD club. There’s nothing like good ‘old fashioned pop-punk to cheer up you up after a heavy day of working and doing “adult” things and to brighten up a day after hearing the devastating news of the passing of rock music’s most loved, Prince.
First to take stage was Sorority Noise. The Connecticut native quartet recently released their sophomore studio album Joy Departed (2015). Although, I wasn’t a super big fan of their set, they did have a couple of great songs they played that night. “Your Soft Blood” off their newest record, Joy Departed was my favorite song they played that night. Maybe because it was haunting and it was something I didn’t expect them to play from hearing the previous up beat songs they played the rest of the night. The song itself is haunting and raw. A nice antidote at the end of their set was when the lead singer, Cameron Boucher, spoke about his own struggles with mental illness and encouraging their fans to seek help and that they do not suffer alone.
Next to take stage was Turnover. Now, I’ve seen this band live before and last time I saw them live I was in awe and same goes for this time, I left in awe. As the Indie band took stage, the whole room lit up with smiles and excitement. The band opened their set with “Cutting off My Fingers” from their latest album Peripheral Vision (2015). I watched as couples grasped each other tightly, swaying to the melodious sounds of the guitar work. My favorite song of the night was “Dizzy on the Comedown”, the song itself is open letter to a girl whom the lead singer seems to be fond of, with childlike lyrics like “Would you come here and spin with me/ I’ve been dying to get you dizzy”. Lead Singer, Austin Getz, stopped for the first time during their set to speak about how Turnover was collecting donations for Planned Parenthood, a non-profit organization in the US that is dedicated to women for reproductive services. “I know you guys here are lucky to have free healthcare but that is not the case in the states and I hope you guys can donate tonight before you leave” states Austin as the crowd cheers. I think it’s great to know that bands in the scene take the initiative to make a statement about women’s rights. It was inspiring to see them use their stage for philanthropic reasons. Although it was bit of a heavy day due to Prince’s passing on this day, the band made sure to keep his spirit alive in the room and dedicated their whole set to late rock legend.
Lastly, Citizen. I was extremely excited to see them live for the first time; they definitely did justice to what I thought they would be like live. They opened their set with “Summer” from their studio album, Youth (2013). Nothing like screaming “I watched you burn!” for the first time was more euphoric to me during that single moment in time. Lead singer, Mat Kerekes, allowed the crowd to sing most of the song. I found a bit irritating seeing as I wanted him to sing most of the songs, but it was nice to see the cohesion happening within the crowd. He kept this routine going for most of night, unfortunately. Surprisingly, the band played a lot of songs off their first album, Youth, instead of their latest, Everybody is Going to Heaven (2015). It was kind of a bonus for me as a fan and for older fans of the band because it brought back a feeling of nostalgia from when the album first came out during the summer of 2013. The band expressed their love for Toronto between songs and how much they loved playing to their Toronto fans. They also expressed how this tour was going to be the last tour before they take a break from touring. It was nice to see them live before they left the scene to take time off for themselves. The band was encored back to stage after their final song, and finished their set with “Drawn Out” from the album Youth. Fans left sweaty and happy. I heard lingering conversations like “Can you believe they played our song!” It’s nice to know how connected people feel when they come to see shows.
