Gig: Deloro

Deloro (Tropics)

The Shop @ Parts & Labour. Friday, June 11, 2010.

At the conclusion of the Robyn Hitchcock show, made my way west down Queen a spell, over to Parkdale. I figured I should hit Parts & Labour in plenty time to catch The Goodnight Loving, slated to be first up at 11:30.

As I paid my cover and stepped in, there's maybe twenty-ish people around, and I soak in the feel of the empty space. Tim is playing in the background as I grab a drink at the bar — and to the good they'd knocked 50¢ off the inflated prices they'd been charging the previous weekend. Your tongue, your transfer, your hand, your answer. People hang around in clumps, the largest of which is over by the bubble hockey table. If being afraid is a crime, we'll hang side by side. I take my place in the back, away from the loudmouths, grabbing a spot on one of the benches on the long wall. Watching people straggle in, looking for any familiar faces. Am I the only one here today?

The Shop, it should be noted, is not a venue where things get going early. Come midnight, I'm sitting around, wondering if I oughtta've come down, looking at my watch and thinking it was unlikely I'd missed the first act — but where were they? About twenty past, Tropics come in, carrying gear and start setting up. This'd be the band's second set of the night, Slim noted — heading over here, it would turn out, to fill in for the original openers who were held up at the border. Well, at least we got something going on.

Now, I've seen the band three or four times, and I think I more or less captured it right last time 'round where I freely threw the word "abrasive" around. The duo, with Simone TB on drums and Slim Twig singing and playing guitar, have a rough-edged line in rock'n'roll clamour, playing quick songs filled with yowl and thrum. Slim uses pedals — including some manner of loop station — to extend and prolong his racket. One song, for example, segued into the next with about a minute of looped guitar grindings. In this room, with the quick set-up and basic sound system, the sound was a little thin and not tweaked to add much to the bottom end, giving it a bit less of a punch than I've heard from them in the past. There were a couple songs I recognized, and one that was introduced as a new one. As has happened in the past, I don't usually head out to hear Tropics, but I'm glad to catch 'em every once in a while. A special nod should be directed at the band for filling in in a pinch, too. Community spirited!

Listen to a track from this set here.

That community vibe was carried on for the headliner's set. Information about Deloro is somewhat scant, but it turns out they're something of a supergroup — on a modest, local scale. It was looking over the personnel of this band that had brought me out for this one — the lineup including Jennifer Castle (a.k.a. Castlemusic), Paul Mortimer and David Clarke (of $100), Dallas Wehrle (of — or ex-? — Constantines) and Tony Romano.

Only the last name was unfamiliar to me and required some digging around. Romano, it turns out, is best known for his work as a visual artist — although some of his work does have a rock'n'roll flair to it, so this other angle shouldn't take us by surprise. It does, however, make him a bit of a wildcard in the musical mix. On the whole, given that list of members, one might guess that the band might be rootsy/folky, but though you hear echoes of that here and there, this was a more robust affair.

The band had a casual sort of approach to start their set. What I had thought was just the band noodling around while soundchecking eased, sans announcement, into the first song. Wehrle, seated, was not only playing his bass, but also a set of bass pedals, backing what was generally a three-guitar attack. Mortimer and Romano mostly split the lead vocal duties, though Castle took the lead on a couple. Paul Mortimer, with his vocal (and presumably songwriting) contributions, was the real revelation here. When you get used to seeing someone playing sideman in a band you can forget that this isn't the sum of them as a musician, so it's good to have projects like this to get a better measure of talents not as often seen.

There was an annoying audience for this one — a lot of people were just out to hang around and talk, some of whom were standing right up front. Vexing, as this was stuff worth listening to — the band was well-rehearsed, and there was some well-executed guitar interplay, and even some good vocal arrangements as well. There was a burnt-out post-bender edge to some of the songs, including the top-notch "Drugs", complete with harmonica from Castle. "No Fun" (not a cover) was another winner, with carefully modulated dynamics giving an impression of restrained fury that could break loose at any time. And, in fact, that sort of burst out with the last song of the set, where Romano brought a bit of a post-rock lurch and yelp to a careening, tempo-shifting finale. All the band needs now is an anthemic sing-along comedown song.

But hopefully there will be more to come. The band had nine songs, enough material for a thirty-five minute set — not bad for a unit that allegedly hadn't played for a year. All of these artists have other things on their plate, but we should hope that they find time for some more shows together.

Listen to a couple tracks from this set here and here.