05-07-2007, 02:25 AM
The eagerly anticipated Tragically Hip concert took place on Tuesday, 1 May in front of a huge crowd at Safehaven. The veteran Canadian rockers were in great form on the night and needed to be following two fantastic performances by opening acts Suckerbox and Smooth Bill Annie.
Thumping out many of their best-known tunes, the Hip played their first ever gig in Cayman to an appreciative audience, who sang along to every word.
The concert, held to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Big Daddy’s Liquor Stores, was a great success, with everyone present clearly enjoying the show.
The evening kicked off with local band Suckerbox, who took the opportunity to play on a grand stage and ran with it. Their pop-punk offerings sounded better than ever, blasting out into the Cayman night and the additional space offered by the huge stage was more than filled by the band’s energy and antics.
Both the crowd and the band seemed to love every moment of the set, which set the standard for the rest of the evening’s entertainment.
Next up were another Cayman-based band, Smooth Bill Annie, who picked things up where Suckerbox left off and really rose to the challenge of playing on a big stage.
They kept the audience captivated with a set of original material, familiar to many on the Island. Songs like Blue Mountain Morning, regularly played on CayRock and now available on the band’s latest CD, sounded great at the Safehaven open air gig.
The locally-formed band, normally found playing bars and clubs on Island, proved they can deliver the goods on a big stage, making that transition seamlessly both in terms of sound and performance.
Both Cayman-based bands looked completely at home on the custom built stage and totally justified their selection in the line up for the biggest rock gig Cayman has seen in quite some time.
“That was a lot of fun,” said Smooth Bill Annie’s percussionist Eden Hurlston afterwards, summing up the sentiments of all the local musicians.
With a multitude of maple leaf flags held high above the crowd, the headline act stepped into the spotlight and delivered a set that had everyone jumping, Canadians and non-Canadians alike.
Lead singer Gordon Downie has a voice as unique as his onstage persona and is backed by a very tight group of accomplished musicians delivering a totally individual sound. Formed in 1983 in Kingston, Ontario, the Tragically Hip have ten successful albums under their belt and, understandably after 24 years together, they really know how to put on a live show.
Having proved that Cayman is capable of putting on a concert of this scope and size, it is hoped other international acts will follow suit and come to perform on the Island.
Thumping out many of their best-known tunes, the Hip played their first ever gig in Cayman to an appreciative audience, who sang along to every word.
The concert, held to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Big Daddy’s Liquor Stores, was a great success, with everyone present clearly enjoying the show.
The evening kicked off with local band Suckerbox, who took the opportunity to play on a grand stage and ran with it. Their pop-punk offerings sounded better than ever, blasting out into the Cayman night and the additional space offered by the huge stage was more than filled by the band’s energy and antics.
Both the crowd and the band seemed to love every moment of the set, which set the standard for the rest of the evening’s entertainment.
Next up were another Cayman-based band, Smooth Bill Annie, who picked things up where Suckerbox left off and really rose to the challenge of playing on a big stage.
They kept the audience captivated with a set of original material, familiar to many on the Island. Songs like Blue Mountain Morning, regularly played on CayRock and now available on the band’s latest CD, sounded great at the Safehaven open air gig.
The locally-formed band, normally found playing bars and clubs on Island, proved they can deliver the goods on a big stage, making that transition seamlessly both in terms of sound and performance.
Both Cayman-based bands looked completely at home on the custom built stage and totally justified their selection in the line up for the biggest rock gig Cayman has seen in quite some time.
“That was a lot of fun,” said Smooth Bill Annie’s percussionist Eden Hurlston afterwards, summing up the sentiments of all the local musicians.
With a multitude of maple leaf flags held high above the crowd, the headline act stepped into the spotlight and delivered a set that had everyone jumping, Canadians and non-Canadians alike.
Lead singer Gordon Downie has a voice as unique as his onstage persona and is backed by a very tight group of accomplished musicians delivering a totally individual sound. Formed in 1983 in Kingston, Ontario, the Tragically Hip have ten successful albums under their belt and, understandably after 24 years together, they really know how to put on a live show.
Having proved that Cayman is capable of putting on a concert of this scope and size, it is hoped other international acts will follow suit and come to perform on the Island.