. . . And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead
Date: April 14, 2005 And Things Couldn't Be Better Not only did . . . And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead treat Ottawa to its first live taste of the band in 2005, they brought along three fantastic representatives of their hometown. With each of the openers delivering a compelling set and the Trail of Dead blowing the Capital Music Hall apart as headliners, this show is already sure to rank among the best that the city will see all year. As a result of the full schedule, the music started promptly, with The Black warming up the early arrivals. I had a hard time pinning down the make-up of this outfit. At one time, the band swelled to seven, with three guitarists and two drummers (including a guest spot from Jason Reece of the Trail of Dead); at other times the band thinned to half that number, including a keyboardist who, despite his notable playing, was scarcely visible on the equipment-laden stage. The band also displayed a musical diversity in the course of a five-song showcase, at times projecting a mournfulness reminiscent of Black Heart Procession, other times laying down an uptempo rock swing. The constant, though, was the high quality of both the songs and the playing, making for the first pleasant surprise of the evening. In contrast, four-piece Austin group The Sword had a singly-focused sound as well-honed as their namesake. Before I had even finished buying a CD from The Black, The Sword began chugging out their rather Sabbath-sounding attack. I am not sure how many fans were expecting a full-on metal band to be among the openers; but I am sure that I was not the only one to be floored by the performance. Without a wasted moment in their brief stage time, The Sword laid down one of the most fun and relentless metal sets that I have seen in ages. Maintaining the diversity of the night, The Octopus Project had the privilege of playing before a rapidly filling floor. The four-piece instrumental unit began their show behind masks styled like electrical outlets, offering a clash between electronic sounds and rock instrumentation. Drummer Toto Miranda was the most dynamic performer, playing atop programmed beats; and he remained a focal point throughout a rapidly-shifting set. With the stage remaining extremely crowded, it was not unusual to see a band member leaping over a monitor or diving under a keyboard to change instruments in mid-song. This dynamism only snagged the group once, when Miranda abandoned his kit and an overly loud drum machine distracted from the rest of the playing. However, the band came out of that misstep well, as Yvonne Lambert's cool work on the theremin guided them through a strong conclusion. After impressive showings from three relatively unknown openers, the crowd was definitely ready for . . . And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead. Although the band had spent the turnover time tossing ice cubes at their roadies from a balcony, they must not have distracted the crew from its work too much; the band's lush sound was crystal clear from the moment that the energizing introduction of "Ode to Isis" led to the explosive opening salvo of "Will You Smile Again?," featuring amazing interplay between the group's two drummers. Although Conrad Keely started on lead vocals, he and Jason Reece traded that role, as well as guitar and drum duties, throughout the night. These shifts did not lessen the rapid pace of the concert, although any break would simply have afforded the audience a chance to pause for breath in a concert that was heavy on motion-inducing bombast. The early portion of the concert concentrated on the band's latest album, Worlds Apart, with the stuttering delivery of "The Best" and the constant propulsion of "Caterwaul" interlaced with "It Was There That I Saw You," and "Days of Being Wild." Ultimately, though, it was older material that comprised the bulk of the affair. "Aged Dolls," "A Perfect Teenhood," and "Clair de Lune" represented the band's 1999 release, Madonna. The dynamism of the Trail of Dead's approach is well illustrated by "Teenhood," which augments a straight-ahead hardcore punk song with an extended breakdown followed by an increasingly dense crescendo of layered guitars, drums, and screamed vocals. Perhaps the most crowd-pleasing song in a night of well-received music, though, came next in the form of a stellar, passionate take of "Another Morning Stoner." The band chose a perfect set-closer in "Totally Natural," which gave the crowd a chance to stomp away, dropped to a slow interlude, and then built back into a frantic wall of noise and screaming that was punctuated by Jason toppling his drum kit to the stage floor, making for a fantastic spectacle. Of course, that demolition was overcome in preparation for an encore that commenced with "Heart in the Hand of the Matter." The band had been very engaging with the audience all night. At one point, Jason suspended one of his cymbal stands in the crowd; and another moment saw guitarist Kevin Allen sliding a drum stick to an eager fan, while maintaining his ultra-calm demeanour. The encore continued this trend, as the band inserted a request for "How Near How Far" into a line-up of "Mistakes & Regrets" and the oldest song of the night, "Richter Scale Madness." The finality of that last song was emphasized when Jason not only upended his drums again, but proceeded to smash a cymbal stand in half and kick in all of his skins, providing ample souvenirs for the fans in the front. After being assisted by a diverse set of opening acts, each of whom came through with an interesting, energetic showing, . . . And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead absolutely killed with their frantic performance, making for one of the most fun concerts that I have seen. The Black setlist 
. . . And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead setlist 
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