Treble Charger - Trent University (10.04.02)
Posted by Tim Moysey on 10.10.2002
A hot band, an enthusiastic university crowd, and baking heat equals tons o' fun.
Is there a better way to be greeted to your school then by a concert from one of your favourite bands? I don't think so. To say that I was stoked when I heard that treble charger would be playing a concert at my school (Trent University) on October 4 would be an under-statement. Unfortunately, I had trouble finding the spot where tickets were on sale (despite what the signs said, I'm 100% sure that were never sold in front of the bookstore), so I missed out on the 'Early Bird' price of $15, but no worries. I eventually found the office that was selling them, plunked down my $20, and all I had to do now was wait. When the day finally came, I made my way over to where the concert was being held (the cafeteria for one of the residences on campus) and waited some more.
The opening act was a band named Four Square. Personally, I had never heard of them before (apparently, their lead singer is good friends with the drummer of treble charger, so I assume that's how they got the gig), but they put on a good show. Unfortunately, the crowd just never really got into them, for whatever reason, but they tried hard, and appeared to be having a good time on stage. Their set lasted about 45 minutes, I'd say.
The intermission. In the baking heat, the crowd waited for treble charger to hit the stage. However, it seemed like they wanted to see how many tracks off of 'Big Shiny Tunes 6' they could play before the audience started rioting. They had played at least 6 or 7 songs from that CD, before the house lights went down, the spotlights came on, and treble charger rushed onto the stage.
To the best of my knowledge, the setlist was as follows (I'm 99% sure that I have all the songs listed, it's just the order that I'm a little unsure on), with notes on each song:
Business: The last single off of their last album, Wide Awake Bored, was a nice, up-tempo way to get the crowd into the show. Personally, I'm not really a fan of this song, but most people in the crowd seemed to enjoy it.
Can't Wake Up: A new song of their latest CD, Detox (my review is available elsewhere on this site). Most people in this crowd didn't know this one, although it's a decent tune to jump up and down to, and that's all people were really asking for at this point.
Brand New Low: A relatively big hit for treble charger from a few years back. Most people there knew the words to this one, and you could see lots of people singing along with the band, which is always cool.
The First Time: Another new one off of Detox. This was the first one sung by Bill Priddle, who, for the most parts, sings the slower, less 'poppy' songs for the band (Greig Nori is the other singer, and he, for the most part, sings the faster, more up-beat songs, and all of the released singles from the past few albums).
What You Want: Also a new one off of the new album. This is one of the more pop-punkish type songs off of the CD, and the crowd seemed to enjoy it quite a bit.
Tired of it Anyway: Yet another new song. It's also very poppy, and the crowd seemed to like this one, as well.
Morale: A personal 'mark-out' moment for myself. This is an older song from their 1995 self=title EP, and it was introduced as a good 'jump up and down song'. This one got one of the best reactions of the night, as I don't think the band plays this song in concert much anymore, usually just relying on their newer material.
Hole in Your Head: Following up an older song with a newer one. This is one of the slower songs of off Detox, and probably one of my least favourites off of that CD, but the crowd seemed to like it ok.
Ideal Waste of Time: From one of my least favourite tracks off of the new album to one of my favourites off of the CD. The rest of this crowd seemed to like it as much as I did, which is a good sign. Hopefully, the band will release this as a single sometime in the near future.
American Psycho: This is probably the band's biggest hit. This also got a huge reaction from the crowd, who were asked to sing part of the song, and didn't miss a beat. Definitely a crowd favourite, as for the first time in the night, a mosh pit was formed (something that I was on the outer fringe of)
More's The Pity: The band slowed it up a bit, and this was the only non-single from Wide Awake Bored that they played. I don't think many people there knew what this song was because of this.
Don't Believe it All: This is probably the slowest track off of Detox (and, ironically, is sung by Nori as opposed to Priddle), and I believe it is the next single, as well. The crowd was more into the lap-dance a guy was giving his girlfriend on stage than the song at this point, which is kind of too bad, as it is a very good song, and was performed very well, too.
How She Died: The first song that the band played from their 1997 album, Maybe It's Me. A mid-tempo number that the crowd seemed to enjoy enough, but never really got too much into it.
Hundred Million: After playing what I think was the theme to King of The Hill, the band went right into their current hit. This also got a very large reaction, and another mosh pit was formed, this one even bigger than the last, and this time, I got thrown into it.
Encores: Red: The bands first big hit, back in 1994. This one brought the lighters in the crowd out (or, as the bassist Rosie Martin suggested, the glowing cell phones, if you didn't have access to a lighter). The crowd REALLY enjoyed this one, as most of the people seemed to be able to sing along with Priddle. Not having any vocals during this one, Nori stood on the barrier (tables turned on their side), and encouraged the crowd to sing along.
Friend of Mine: A personal favourite, I think I enjoyed this one more than most others in attendance, but a good way to end the show, regardless.
Some final thoughts on the show. It was short. treble charger was probably on the stage for a little more than an hour. Even though I did get to hear pretty much every song that I wanted to, there were a few more that they could have pulled out and made the show go a little longer (even if it only would be for another 10 minutes). Another thing you'll notice if you ever go to see treble charger in concert is that, while Bill Priddle stays very close to the album, in terms of lyrics, Greig Nori is all over the place. Some lyrics are completely different as compared to the album, while some are just in different parts of the song. This is not necessarily a bad thing, however, it just depends on what your preference is.
The 411: An enthusiastic college crowd and a hot live band make for an awesome experience.
