By Nancy Ewachow
“The last time I saw you was the last time they were here” was heard more than once when the Canadian music scene’s secret weapon, The Sadies, graced the stage at Crocks on Friday June 28. In their country and western finery and on their second of two northern Ontario stops before returning to southern Ontario for more summer shows and a well-heralded album release in September, the band was in excellent form and the devil was kept at bay as they played the hell out of wire, wood, and amps. This was the first time they had played Crocks with the new stage arrangement and the improved room sound.
The opening band, The Strumbellas from Toronto (via Lindsay, ON) were on their way to the prairies and brought high energy and a stage full of young performers to cheerfully warm up a happy crowd. When The Sadies appeared, a night of full-volume electric music ensued, both mind-bendingly proficient as well as mind-bending in tradition (the real genre being good music, well played), and the songs just kept coming. Singer/guitarist Dallas Good somewhat kept track at over fifty, while the audience danced ecstatically and still demanded more of them. Excellent fiddle playing by Travis Good (also singer/guitarist) left his bow with a few less horsehair, and rhythm section bassist Sean Dean and drummer Mike Belitsky played at full throttle. The band also thanked local hero Dave Kristiansen for mechanical help fixing the touring van.
Watch for the September 17 release of LP Internal Sounds on Outside Music, as well as a summertime performance with veteran Andre Williams among their upcoming shows. Visit thesadies.net or facebook.com/thesadies for more information.
The Sadies
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Strumbellas
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Photos by Scott Hobbs
