Badbadnotgood: Live Show Review
Any act that has the pleasure of playing Massey Hall knows that it’s an absolute honour. Built in 1894, it is Toronto’s most historical music venue with the best acoustics in the city. Holding up to 2,752, it has orchestra seats and 2 balconies. I’ve cried at every show I’ve been to there. The feeling of hearing sound so crystal clear and not skewed my crumby audio systems or poorly designed venues is unparalleled. You could very well record a snippet of a show and use it as a ring tone.
Friday, October 20, 2014 saw Toronto’s jazz/hip hop group BADBADNOTGOOD (BBNG) on the second night of Red Bull Sound Select’s #3DaysinToronto music series. I was lucky enough to snag tickets to the sold-out show.
It was a bit of a pandemonium getting a seat. Showing up right at 7pm for doors, there was already a lineup halfway around the block. Once inside, groups were scrambling on all levels trying to save seats for them and their friends. It’s times like these where you’ll see a professional concert goer keeping their eyes expertly peeled at the sea of seats in front of them.
Rule of thumb: ACT FAST. For general admission seated or standing, you can’t wait to keep up with the crowd. Dodge, duck, and fast walk your way to the front.
I couldn’t understand why they made the show general admission and not assigned seating considering it was sold out. What would happen to the one awkward single seat in between groups? But in fact, this helped add to the casual nature of the show. Guests were interacting, able to get up and leave their seats, and we even had a 45 minute intermission in between acts for us to stock up on drinks.
We landed seventh row seats and I was ready to experience some intense jazz vibrating the hair on my arms. The band slowly placed themselves on the big stage and introduced us to an interesting show concept. BBNG played many of their hits, bringing on a guest string quartet, saxophonist, trumpeter, and keyboardist. In between songs of their own, they brought on friends River Tibre, Charlotte Day Wilson, and Jay Electronica periodically throughout the night to perform a few songs each. The performance felt like a specially curated collective of the bands friends and acts that are making waves in the jazz/r&b scene.
For those of you that have never had the opportunity to experience live jazz, I highly recommend it. Not everyone understands the genre. Some feel as though it’s a massacre of sounds, being thrown all together with no regard to syncopation or harmony.
Those people are entirely wrong.
Seeing it exhibited on Toronto’s best stage was something I will never forget.
Jazz music is heavily carried by the drums, with ever changing accents and time signatures. It is the heart beat that keeps the momentum moving forward. Drummer Alexander Sowinski sounded like constant rain drops hitting a tin bucket. The ride work and drum rolls vibrated like a purring cat.
The bass is the soul of the entire production, dictating the tone and BBNG’s tone is what makes their music different from conventional jazz. Chester Hansen’s progressions follow an urban/hip hop settlement, making their tracks DIRTY AS HELL. (Dirty is a good thing. Pronounced: dirrrrty). His fingers move like spiders on the neck of his base. I was having difficulty processing the bass’ relationship with the drums. It’s like a 60 year married couple that finish one another’s sentences. Mind = BLOWN.
The keys are the batting eyes. The melodic flourishes in time with the drums and bass, accented the phrases and gave flight to the songs. Keyboardist Matthew Tavares did not stop head banging the entire time. He was putting way more than his fingers into his performance. I hope he has a good chiropractor.
Then there’s the horns, the saxophone. This is the voice. It tells the story and if you really listen to the movements you can understand what it is trying to say. Leland Whitty played it with confidence and lead the pack forward like a lead singer. This relationship among all parts is like a Jackson Pollock painting. Initially, appearing to be an unorganized mess, but upon deeper listening, a realization that all colours and techniques serve a purpose.
Their music sewed itself into my brain. The undying constant beat and dancing seam of music rewired the inner workings of my thoughts and emotions. After the show, I felt as though I was thinking more clearly. Jazz music takes you on a journey and you can feel where it’s going. When the climax breaks out, you feel discombobulated but it finds itself right back again. You are left feeling buoyant and weightless, like you just flew around the entire world.
For those that haven’t experienced live jazz…
When you do, open yourself to the music and let it come at you. Let it speak in waves that move you.
It will make you feel alive.
