By Jordi Oliveres
It’s easy to accuse a band with a huge following in only one country of pandering to the idiosyncrasies of their localized fan base and not producing work of the quality and sophistication worthy of international acclaim. This may very well be true in the case of David Hasselhoff and his unlikely success in Germany, but in the case of The Trews, who performed Wednesday night for about forty people at the Mercury Lounge, it is shocking that they are not more popular outside their home country of Canada.
The quartet from Antignonish, Nova Scotia, has released four full-length albums (two of them have gone “certified Canadian Gold”), won five Juno awards (Canada’s Grammys), and opened for Robert Plant, Guns N’ Roses, and The Rolling Stones. The hype up north is well deserved; The Trews put on a world-class rock show.
They opened with “The World I Know,” the first single off their new album, Hope & Ruin, and immediately got everyone’s feet tapping to the dark and hypnotic guitar riff that starts the song. The first three numbers were all played back to back, in a Soundgarden-meets-Velvet-Revolver style. Indeed, lead singer Colin Macdonald sounds a lot like Chris Cornell: he has a scratchy and powerful voice with a seemingly endless range that always stayed in tune.
The band plays in two distinctive styles. The first is the aforementioned late-nineties murky guitar-rock; the second is a cornier – yet equally enjoyable – late-nineties Bon-Jovi-meets-Collective-Soul-meets-Irish-folk-music variety. The latter style was characterized by songs like the bass-driven, “Tired Of Waiting,” the super catchy, “Love Is The Real Thing,” and “Hope & Ruin” "At our big shows," Macdonald told us, "we get the crowd to sing along with us”.
Things took a turn for the emotional towards the end of the set when “Highway of Heroes,” a song about a girl from The Trews’ hometown who was killed in Afghanistan, was beautifully delivered by MacDonald. He sang the folky tune with his eyes closed and his arms above his head backed by an ominous martial drum groove. The mood and the energy were immediately elevated afterwards by “I Can’t Stop Laughing,” an early Trews song with a wild drum introduction in the vein of “Sing, Sing, Sing,” and “Power of Positive Drinking,” sung with beer in hand and just the right amount of cowbell.
The Trews' quality as a rock band and their memorable songs should be enough to bring them international success. But, just to be sure, MacDonald did the one thing guaranteed to transcend all borders: he made fun of Nickelback. “What hipsters don’t realize,” he said, “is that they’re kind of like the new Nickelback: nobody likes them.”
Great review. Those of us in the States who have been fans for a long time are also wondering why they aren’t appreciated here. I live in Boston and never hear their music on the radio. I don’t think that they are promoted enough here. They kind of sneak in and out of cities. The show in Boston was electric, no pun intended. Hopefully in the future they will return more often and stay longer.
Great review. Those of us in the States who have been fans for a long time are also wondering why they aren’t appreciated here. I live in Boston and never hear their music on the radio. I don’t think that they are promoted enough here. They kind of sneak in and out of cities. The show in Boston was electric, no pun intended. Hopefully in the future they will return more often and stay longer.
Great review. Those of us in the States who have been fans for a long time are also wondering why they aren’t appreciated here. I live in Boston and never hear their music on the radio. I don’t think that they are promoted enough here. They kind of sneak in and out of cities. The show in Boston was electric, no pun intended. Hopefully in the future they will return more often and stay longer.
Great review. Those of us in the States who have been fans for a long time are also wondering why they aren’t appreciated here. I live in Boston and never hear their music on the radio. I don’t think that they are promoted enough here. They kind of sneak in and out of cities. The show in Boston was electric, no pun intended. Hopefully in the future they will return more often and stay longer.
Great review. Those of us in the States who have been fans for a long time are also wondering why they aren’t appreciated here. I live in Boston and never hear their music on the radio. I don’t think that they are promoted enough here. They kind of sneak in and out of cities. The show in Boston was electric, no pun intended. Hopefully in the future they will return more often and stay longer.
Great review. Those of us in the States who have been fans for a long time are also wondering why they aren’t appreciated here. I live in Boston and never hear their music on the radio. I don’t think that they are promoted enough here. They kind of sneak in and out of cities. The show in Boston was electric, no pun intended. Hopefully in the future they will return more often and stay longer.
Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed the review and, more importantly, the show in Boston. I used to live right next to Church and I love that venue. I hope they return more often too!
Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed the review and, more importantly, the show in Boston. I used to live right next to Church and I love that venue. I hope they return more often too!
Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed the review and, more importantly, the show in Boston. I used to live right next to Church and I love that venue. I hope they return more often too!
Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed the review and, more importantly, the show in Boston. I used to live right next to Church and I love that venue. I hope they return more often too!
Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed the review and, more importantly, the show in Boston. I used to live right next to Church and I love that venue. I hope they return more often too!
Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed the review and, more importantly, the show in Boston. I used to live right next to Church and I love that venue. I hope they return more often too!