Concert Review: The Slyde

June 7th brought us the welcoming prog band The Slyde their first time back in Montreal in 5 years.

 

The show began by myself waiting outside for almost an hour, eagerly waiting to see this glorious band live. I managed to do some sight seeing around Place Des Arts to see what action was happening around the Grand Prix weekend, and never have I seen montreal so packed, especially in the metro:  The city felt alive with a cool vibe. 

 

Once the doors opened I got to chat with a few of the bands there, one being Penny For the Selfless who started the show off with a bang. Once they got on they had a few technical problems with their guitars, yet they pushed through and kicked things into gear. The whole band had very interesting grooves And Dynamics, as if they were trying to replicate a lot of metal genres at once, which most bands can’t execute very well, with the exception of Mellevon. Needless to say this young up and coming act were very good and interesting: I hope they persue a lot of good things in their musical careers. 

 

 

Next up was The Slyde, which was surpising, as it was their album release show, so I thought they should be headlining. Needless to say, prior to listening to their debut album “Awakening”, I had very high expectations for this band. Boy, was I in for a very special show, that could possibly top one of my favorites of all time. They started off with “Walk With Me”, which brought the whole place down: the translation from album to live setting captures the same amount of character that was showcased on the album. It blew my mind how incredibly they were able to create a crisp and finely tuned sound live, that matched the production value on the album. 

 

It’s very rare that so many bands execute this well, and I applaud The Slyde for doing so: I loved how engaging they were with one another and so professional with how they handled everything onstage. They played a handful of songs from Awakening such as 'These Wars', 'Awakening' 'In Silence 'Join the Parade', 'So Blind' and 'Back Again'. Overall this was one of the most intimate shows I've ever seen a band perform their album as a whole,  up against Colors from Between the buried and Me, and Fortess from Protest The hero. This rare occasion where a band captivates me with their creativity and pure musicianship is one for the books. 

 

Headlining the show was Bird Problems, who I had been looking forward to seeing live because I heard so many good things about them. They reminded me of old school groups like Between the Buried and Me, the Self Titled, and Silent Circus Era, with a mix of Dillinger Escape Plan. To my surprise they executed very creative progressive movements utilizing hardcore elements. The wild dramatics that their singer had on stage really captivated me and kept me engaged with their music: you can also tell that the other band members were having a good time too. Their show was surprisingly a lot of heavy emphisis on the instrumentals that were so well structured and balanced, they seemed to bring everything to life. 

 

They played half of their debut album “Tar”, but I don't know if they also played some songs off their EP:  never the less, I dug them and I really hope that they continue to change and evolve further into stranger directions.  Thanks Bird Problems for making me smile throughout your set, and with a name like Bird Problems, I’m sure they’ll catch the attentinon of other metalheads, and gain the recognition they deserve.