Best of 2007: The Shows

Last year around this time, I was saying that my goal for 2007 was to attend more shows. Well, at 58 shows and 123 different live acts, I'd say mission accomplished. If I had started this blog when I was a younger man, then I'd be looking forward to upping the ante for next year. But alas, I am but a man with many responsibilities and I'll likely have to scale it down a touch for next year. That having been said, choosing the best shows of the year, for the most part, presented a bit of a challenge. But pictured above I would say that these were the top 20. Here are a few of the highlights:

1. Peter Bjorn and John at The Phoenix was by and large my favorite show of the year. It had many things running in its favor. First of all, there was the surprise factor. I knew it was going to be good, but not THAT good. They possessed an energy that reminded me of some of the old footage you would see of The Beatles performing at Shea Stadium. No joking.

Original review is here.
Download: Young Folks mp3
Photos: Peter Bjorn and John @ The Phoenix on flickr

2. Running a very close second was Loney, Dear which gets my vote for the most under appreciated show of the year. This show drew a comparatively smallish crowd, and that's unfortunate because it means that the rest of Toronto was likely doing something less enjoyable. Emil Svanängen is Sweden's most charismatic export and if they ever come back again, you owe it to yourself, dear music lover, to check him out.

Original review is here.
Download: I Am John mp3 / The City, The Airport mp3
Photos: Loney, Dear @ Lee's Palace on flickr

3. Rounding out the easy to choose top 3 was The Sadies team up with John Doe at Lee's Palace for this year's NXNE festival. For years I had heard about how great The Sadies were to see live, and this team up with the legendary John Doe was a perfect introduction for me. There is nothing the Sadies cannot do, and they proved that immensely at this show.

Original review here.
Download: The Golden State by John Doe mp3 / Loved On Look by The Sadies mp3
Photos: John Doe and The Sadies @ Lee's Palace on flickr

The rest of the pictured top 20 are:
4. Okkervil River @ Lee's Palace (review)
5. They Might Be Giants @ The Mod Club (review)
6. Last Town Chorus @ The Phoenix (review)
7. Midlake @ Lee's Palace (review)
8. Stars @ The Phoenix (review)
9. Richard Hawley @ The Horseshoe (review)
10. Nicole Atkins @ Lee's Palace (review)
11. Dinosaur Jr @ The Phoenix (review)
12. Basia Bulat @ Criminal Records (review)
13. Krief @ Rancho Relaxo (review)
14. Ohbijou @ Lee's Palace (review)
15. Sparklehorse @ Mod Club (review)
16. Cold War Kids @ Mod Club (review)
17. Fox Jaws @ Rancho Relaxo (review)
18. Lowest Of The Low @ Horseshoe (review)
19. The Besnard Lakes @ Horseshoe (review)
20. Jason Falkner @ The Reverb (review)

There were also a few single performances that really stood out for me and I just thought I'd mention them as well:

The single best performance I've seen this year was Rick White with The Sadies covering the MC5's "Looking At You". Pure garage rock adrenalin.

Video: The MC5 performing "Looking At You" in 1970 on youtube

I also loved Kevin Drew hopping on stage for the encore of Dinosaur Jr's Phoenix show to perform "The Wagon." The youthful enthusiasm that he portrays from playing with his childhood heroes is very contagious.

Video: Dinosaur Jr performs "The Wagon" at the Reading Festival in 1997 on youtube

And Nicole Atkins' cover of Patti Smith's "Pissing In A River" truly has to be seen to be believed. Captivating to say the least.

Video: Nicole Atkins performing "Pissing In A River" in Copenhagen on youtube