Jamming it real hard with Between Friends

The outside of Le Ministère was inconspicuous enough for a Monday. With a few smokers lingering outside and muffled music pouring onto the street, it seemed like any other evening on Saint-Laurent Street. Yet, past the chilly air and into the sweaty, hazy venue, indie pop duo Between Friends brought Montreal into the euphoric, 2000s-fuelled world of their new album, WOW!

As “You & Me Time” blasted through the speakers, the evening was already electric. Beaming lights and glow sticks cut through clouds of smoke as Savannah and Xavier Hudson stepped on stage. The duo instantly turned the venue into a blown-out club, with the whole room jumping up and down, leather boots sticking to alcohol-stained floors. Bold neon lights flooded the space as bodies swayed, creating a rhythm of their own. It was exactly what WOW! is all about— feeling young and careless, with a vodka cranberry in hand. As the room sang along to XD, the lyrics seemed to resonate with every person there: “Tonight, I’m looking on the bright side.” The duo’s energy was mesmerizing, with Savannah’s shirt reading “good girls go to heaven, bad girls go to Montreal” glowing under the purple haze.

Smoke lingering across the venue put the show on hold for thirty minutes as the fire alarm went off, sending the musicians backstage. After turning off the smoke machines and crowd covers of Queen songs, the siblings came back on stage with a bottle of Jameson in hand. The start of JAM! was welcomed with pulsating lights, cheers, and a shot. A fan favourite, the crowd yelled every word, drowning out Savannah and Xavier’s voices. Once wasn’t enough— not even close. Between Friends played the track four times throughout their set, taking turns singing it from the audience. The duo invited every person in the room to experience the electrifying world of WOW! right beside them.

Through their electropop and danceable tunes, Between Friends still found space for bittersweet, nostalgic moments. Songs like “blushing” and “affection” offered a break from the party. The kind where you sneak off to the bathroom to think for a minute, music still blasting from the other room. Hearing “affection” left me starstruck— suddenly, I was 18 again, red solo cup in hand, looking for affection in all the wrong places.

As the night slowly came to a close, the siblings were still giving it their all. They ended the evening with an encore of “JAM!” Anyone who had left the room hurried back in, ready to experience “WOW!” for a few more minutes. On my way out, I glanced at the merch booth, noticing a shirt with the text those who don’t believe in WOW! will never find it. Still buzzing from the last few hours, I understood exactly why that was true.