[Daryl24]

Gay Cops lol

[carebread]

I'm trying to ignore the unnecessary butchering with weird thoughts, such as what a tragedy it'd be if either Rob or Paul started going bald.

[loxahatchee]

At least this is free ....

[direwolf74]

Damn, Nautical started out amazing with Gord actually singing...and then it turned into garbage as soon as he started yelling again. It honestly saddens me to watch it, especially when the band behind him is playing so well. I have tickets for the Calgary show later this summer on Sept. 7th, but I'm starting to have serious doubts about seeing these guys live anymore. I've been a fan of this band since I was 16, so it's pretty painful for me to admit that. It's a shame, because their new material is still so brilliant. I absolutely adore NFPA.

[carebread]

I just read this tweet: "The Hip sound awesome, except Gord. Stop screaming your lyrics out of time to us. That's our job!"

[mark]

1 question and 1 comment

when did gord stop singing? all he does is yell now.

From my point of view he officially stopped singing sometime around 2010-ish, just after his solo tour for The Grand Bounce. He sounds ok on the newer material, but for some reason he always feels the need to turn the older songs into a freakin' train wreck. I'm trying to understand what his reasoning is for doing this, and I'm totally baffled. Because it's not like his voice has deteriorated. He still sounds fantastic on the studio albums, and he sounds fine when he does those solo acoustic appearances. I don't get it. It's a shame, because the band has never sounded tighter.

it was so bad i had to turn it off during Man Machine Poem. brutal

[srb]

Was this show only streamed online, or was it also broadcast on CBC tv?

[Jack Straw]

I played LBU earlier today & now I'm rolling through The Vault Vol. 1 and the singing is just spot on... And he hasn't lost that as someone else eluded to, he's just choosing not to... sometimes less is more and just staying within yourself. It works for golf... I saw the LA show this past DEC and the new stuff was really good because he was singing it... MMP was fine today... it works like that, but Grace was a complete train wreck IMO... I'm not inclined to listen to very many live shows from the past couple of years at all... It's fine & fun to go, but not some much as back-yard audio... The band played awesome today tho... and the look on Paul's face during Bones was priceless...

So, any bets on tomorrow's opener?

[srb]

Anyone get a capture of the whole show? My set up failed somewhere after Ahead By A Century and until Nautical

[MattyM]

I'd love to hear if someone got a capture at all?

From the impression I got live (and if you saw any crowd shots, or know Trafalgar Square I was 2/3rds of the way back, just before the raised steps) was that Gord was frustrated by the crowd and felt that they weren't listening to the set (and if those near me were any indicator they were more worried about chugging all the £5 cans of Molson they'd bought), there seemed to be a real shift around Bobcaygeon where the audience seemed to be much more into it and to me Gord started singing a little more.

I'll reserve judgement on the new screamo Hip until I've seen them again tonight in a small venue, hopefully we'll get a more traditional Gord. i think Ben (Zenith) might be taping too.

Out of interest, how much did CBC stream? There was a really solid set by Arkells, The Sheepdogs were good and earlier in the day Ben Caplan and Old Man Luedecke were great as well. USS were okay but I found Jann Arden pretty samey and boring. Wrong setting for her really...

[Zenith]

I have to agree with the comments about Gord's screaming. I found it pretty frustrating, especially when he went really out of time during "Susan..." bit of Nautical. Like others have said, when he does sing, his voice sounds great. All this screaming seems like a good way to make his voice deteriorate even quicker. Hopefully that won't be the case tonight.

On the flip side, Johnny's drumming was amazing yesterday!

From the impression I got live (and if you saw any crowd shots, or know Trafalgar Square I was 2/3rds of the way back, just before the raised steps) was that Gord was frustrated by the crowd and felt that they weren't listening to the set (and if those near me were any indicator they were more worried about chugging all the £5 cans of Molson they'd bought)

Good god, yes. I guess that's the curse of a free gig: lots of people that don't actually know who the Hip are, happily talking through the whole set. Very annoying.

I'll reserve judgement on the new screamo Hip until I've seen them again tonight in a small venue, hopefully we'll get a more traditional Gord.

Same here. I wasn't a fan of the screaming particularly. Also, the live mix wasn't great.

i think Ben (Zenith) might be taping too.

Yep, hopefully.

[Zenith]

I got a few pretty decent shots from last night (just from half way back with a long lens). Hopefully I'll get some better ones tonight!

[spottrax]

I caught the entire stream and was entertained but not blown away. A couple thoughts....

As many of us have stated lately, Screamo-Gord is really tough to handle unless you're actually at the show. When you're in the crowd and the PA is blasting the band really loud, the band and the overall vibe overrides the screaming. Part of me feels for GD because he is struggling with his voice. It is that simple folks. I am 50, I sing in two bands, approx 40-50 shows a year and it does take it's toll. It seems to me a conscience decision was made on the 09 tour to tone down the louder songs and play a variety the won't further destroy GD's vocal chords. That tour was lovely. Recently, it seems that GD has simply said ***k it and they rip through all the hits and rockers. If they switch gears his voice (midrange) can't take it. Downie does appear to know to not rant anymore (except a few times) to try and save a little. It is sad because we love him for his voice and his stage presence (is there anyone who compares when he is on?). At lower volumes he has most of his range and his tone (check out the acoustic solo performance of the Lookahead with him and Paul on youtube). I hate to say it but I don't think they should do anymore live streams etc.

I do believe the band was slightly pissed about the lack of enthusiasm after the first few songs but Grace was less than stellar, MMP was unfamiliar territory for most people and momentum was lost a bit. The Hip would've been better off IMO to play something much older after MMP and get them back...something with a groove but with more melody and singing (ie 38 years old or Cordelia.

The Bones vs NOIS fiasco was really painful. Not sure if I have seen a band with different members playing two different songs at the same time... all because of curfew issues. That was crazy. After thousands of shows, these guys are absolute pros and made the best of the situation. Bones rocked.

I'm sure the band simply takes all of this in stride. Just another town, another show.

[Zenith]

I do believe the band was slightly pissed about the lack of enthusiasm after the first few songs but Grace was less than stellar, MMP was unfamiliar territory for most people and momentum was lost a bit. The Hip would've been better off IMO to play something much older after MMP and get them back...something with a groove but with more melody and singing (ie 38 years old or Cordelia.

I agree. I was surprised they played as much new stuff as they did. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad they did, but I think most people where there to hear more of the old stuff. It wasn't a Hip show at the end of the day, but a Canada show.

[kennedy11]

The majority of the show from yesterday is up on YouTube. The video in HD looks freakin amazing. Just a quick question. When did Paul start smoking on stage again?
He was singing the chorus from 'At Transformation' with the smoke hanging out of his mouth.