Peter Morén @ Soundscapes (In Store Performance)

Last year, I did not mince words when talking about how great it was to see Peter Bjorn and John live. It was easily my favorite show of my concert full year. Sadly, I didn't get to see their return to our city in January but from what I've heard, it was equally as engrossing. Well, it looks like we'll have another release from them before too long, but in the meantime, Peter Morén's The Last Tycoon has been garnering substantial praise on its own. Since the new PB&J is rumoured to be an instrumental album, The Last Tycoon may be the closest thing we get to a new pop release from Peter. I have yet to hear the album myself, but from the songs he performed at Soundscapes yesterday, it sounds like a pretty decent album.

I knew that I was not going to be able to check out his show at the El Mocambo last night, so I was very glad that my work day ended a little bit earlier because Peter was scheduled to go on at 4pm. That's hardly the ideal time for people with normal jobs. Thankfully my job is somewhat abnormal and therefore, on this particular day, I was able to reap the benefits. (Today however, I did my taxes and there, my friends, is where the benefits of an abnormal work situation stops. But I digress...) He may have been minus Bjorn and John, but he still had two other mates with him, namely Tobias Froberg on bass and Doug Marvin from Dirty On Purpose on drums. He opened the show with a Richard Hell cover. I did not know the song myself, but it sounded good. He mentioned that his decision to play the cover was really sort of a spur of the moment thing and his band mates apparently didn't know he was going to play it, which made the performance even more amazing. He also pulled out Goodbye Again Or, a song from Falling Out, PB&J's second album. But for the most part, he stuck to songs from the solo release. In this intimate setting, what really stood out for me was what a unique and individual voice he has. I really enjoyed his set closer, an enthusiastic performance of a song called Social Competence. He finished by saying that he had to stop playing so that people come to his show that evening. Ending with that song was an effective way of encouraging people to attend because it really is a great sounding tune. And for those of us who couldn't attend, well, let's just say that now I wish that I could've attended. Drat.

Photos: My pics of Peter Morén @ Soundscapes are on flickr
Download: Social Competence mp3

Myspace: Peter Morén
Purchase: The Last Tycoon at Touch and Go/Quarterstick Records