Seattle-based band Ivan & Alyosha played Calgary’s HiFi Club on Saturday, May 4th. They have been selling out 200-300 person capacity venues on their tour to support their debut album, “All the Times We Had,” but it would seem that their catchy music hasn’t quite caught on yet in Calgary, as only a couple dozen people were lucky enough to check them out.
Though the ticket indicated the show would start at 9:00 pm, opening act Jay Nash was on at 8:30 to showcase his singer-songwriter skills to those on hand. He was happy to be in Calgary, and was glad that he was able to have a favourite drink, Maker’s Mark bourbon, which he hasn’t found in a while out on tour. Nash reminded me a bit of Ray LaMontagne but with more of a country twist. He liked to tell some of the stories behind the songs, mentioning that singer-songwriters tend to “take the ordinary stuff that happens to everyone, get all emotional about it, and then go off alone in a room to write a song about it.” Nash stands out among the typical singer-songwriter with his poetic lyrics. His latest album, “Letters From the Lost” is set to release next week.
Ivan & Alyosha opened their set with the toe-tapping song, “Be Your Man”. It is one of their many up-beat songs that just begs to have the audience join in with singing and dancing. There was no lack of energy from the band, and it was nice to see a few brave people take advantage of all the space on the dance floor.
The second song of the night, “Easy to Love” is also a great descriptor of the band. With bright vocal harmonies and a positive pop-rock vibe, listeners can quickly connect to the music. It wouldn’t be surprising to find their songs popping up on the radio in the not-too-distant future. The chemistry between the five group members performing is also noticeable, especially between brothers (Tim Wilson on lead vocals and acoustic guitar, and Pete Wilson on bass and vocals).
Because of the harmonies and the acoustic guitar, Ivan & Alyosha often get branded as “folk” and compared to bands such as their label-mates, The Lumineers. However, with the absence of banjos on stage, and any of the tell-tale clothing often associated with the genre, this group is a step removed. During the concert, they cheekily self-described their song, “Glorify” as “suburbs-country” because it is representative of who they are. This song was a definite highlight of the show, and was beautifully enriched by harmonica accompaniment. The spiritual matters in the song are a reminder of where the band name comes from: the characters, Ivan and Alyosha in Dostoevsky’s “The Brothers Karamazov” who discuss matters of faith and doubt.
Ivan & Alyosha dismissed any doubts that they can also really rock out on their songs when they want to. When they finished with “Running for Cover” the audience was left wanting more. It was such a shame to say goodbye so soon, as it seemed that the band was rushing off to make way for the late show.
This great show might have been even better in a larger, more thematically appropriate venue such as The Ironwood, where the band would have likely found a larger audience and any unknowing patrons would have counted themselves lucky to have stumbled upon this group. Always appreciative of the applause and cheers, Tim Wilson mentioned that they weren’t sure if those of us that were there, were there for them or some other reason. Judging by the smiles on everyone’s faces at the end, he can at least be sure that everyone had a good time and likely went away feeling privileged to have seen such a high-caliber band in such a small, intimate setting.