I saw Matt Holubowski open up for Dan Mangan at Algonquin College. I had never heard about him but I quite enjoyed him. I feel he was channelling Bon Iver with his songs. When I walked in I had this wave of “I want to support whoever is on stage tonight” so I bought his CD before even seeing him on stage. While I waited for him I thought “That was quite silly. What if I hate this guy?” Turns out that my fears were unfounded.
Here’s the deal with Dan Mangan. I’ve always loved his live shows and his older albums but I have to say his last couple of albums were not hitting the mark for me. No matter, when you follow a songwriter through their career, there are bound to be a few times where you enjoy the ride with them when they try out different things.
Regardless of how I felt, it doesn’t matter. Seeing him and his band brings these new songs to life brings a new appreciation along with it. Dan Mangan concerts are always an intimate affair. I really enjoyed something he said (paraphrased) : “The best part of a show is when I trip on a guitar cable or my voice cracks in a song. That’s when the show becomes real.” Something to that effect but it’s completely true. As soon as something like that happens, there’s nothing to worry about during the show any longer and you just ride the wave.
At the end of the show they brought out the ‘Hammer’, a 360 degree camera to film us singing the last song. It would be neat to figure out how to save that video from Facebook.
Update! At the show Dan mentioned how if we messaged him on Facebook he would send us a recording of the show. I said “Why not? Let’s give this a try!” As you all know, I’m a sucker for live recordings.
After a few months of chatting with him I wake up one morning in May and find that he has sent a soundboard recording of the show to me! Dan, you and your band rock!
Setlist:
Lynchpin
Cold in the Summer
Can’t Not
Road Regrets
Pine for Cedars
Lay Low
Which Is It
Race to the Bottom
Just Fear
Hang With Me [Robyn] @Info[solo, twitter request]
Basket @Info[solo]
The Indie Queens Are Waiting @Info[Duet]
Fool for Waiting @Info[solo]
Troubled Mind
Mouthpiece
Peaks & Valleys
Sold
Robots
So Much for Everyone