Gold – photo courtesy Brent Chaikowsky
Saturday night saw the start of a new year with some great local sounds at the Republik. Three Calgary acts – Gold, Windigo and Samantha Savage Smith graced the small but enthusiastic audience with some warm melodies on a pleasant winter night.
True to their tweets, Kaelen Ohm and Rena Kozak of Gold took to the stage around 10:30, and quickly shut down every conversation in the bar with a sweet collection of beautiful vocals and tight guitars that caused more than one audience member to enquire where this delightful duo had come from. You can forgive the crowd for not believing the group’s Calgary roots, when they exclaimed that they had finally realized their dream of hitting the Republik stage – for the very first time. The best way to describe their set? According to the conversation in the men’s bathroom, it was “pretty” – the music, not the singers (although it was pointed out that the compliment worked both ways). Would love to tell you when you could next see them perform, but their website/Facebook/Twitter feeds gives us no clues. You can reach ’em on Twitter at @goldtheband, and ask them yourselves.
Windigo had the hard job of following up to a stellar performance – really, the meat of an awesome sandwich is a hard place to be. The youngsters had to battle a few technical difficulties, and you couldn’t help but feel a little bad for them. Chris, Chris, Anthony, Juan and Jen gave it their all, but I think the demo track they have posted (free!) on their website does them a lot more justice. Nevertheless, they had a vocal group of supporters in the front row, and seemed to be having some fun. Would love to see them again, and watch them grow.
Samantha Savage Smith – photo courtesy Brent Chaikowsky
And of course, headliner Samantha Savage Smith lived up the local hype, putting out a performance that kept the crowd enthralled until they finally called it a night around two in the morning. I was nearly upset by the glaring omission of “You Always Come to Mind”, but she dutifully came back for a well-deserved encore, and swept the crowd in the palm of her hand with this achingly warm and soulful tune. Your next chance to catch this Calgary star is at the High Performance Rodeo, where she will join fellow Calgary acts (past and present) Woodpigeon, Clinton St. John and Laura Leif in teaming with Reykjavik artists Benni Hemm Hemm at Prins Polo at Festival Hall for Sonic Waves.
Special shout out to Carl Cassidy, spinning some awesome old tracks in between sets, dropping tunes that haven’t heard airtime in a few decades, at least.
The next local band to follow in Gold’s footsteps and grace the hallowed stage of the Republik? Rocker Matt Blais brings Trinity Bradshaw and DangerFloyd to the old house on 17th for the release party for “The Heartbeat”. Tickets are $20, and get you in the door with a copy of the new album to take home afterwards. February 9th, doors at nine.
