The pandemic changed many things. Bands visiting from beyond these shores have been one of them, as waves of tour postponements and outright cancellations have hit the music industry.
It was therefore heartwarming to see quirky Canadian pop-rockers Barenaked Ladies (BNL) venturing over, opening their UK tour in Aberdeen last night.
After more than 30 years together and selling 15 million records, the Toronto-based four-piece are here promoting their wonderfully titled Detour de Force album, on a run of UK dates that finish up at the Royal Albert Hall later this month.
Renowned for silliness during their shows, there was a big turnout to see the band at the Beach Ballroom, many of whom had been there on their last visit to the Granite City in 2015.
Boothby Graffoe support Barenaked Ladies in Aberdeen
Talking of laughs, musical comedian Boothby Graffoe was the warm-up act, telling some sharp tales before he was joined by BNL’s Jim Creegan and his thumping double bass to round off a fun set.
The lights went down at 9pm and Barenaked Ladies ambled on and slid into opener New Disaster, before effortlessly gliding through a hearty, tight 90-minute set that proved just how high the bar is when it comes to North American bands.
Barenaked Ladies are a blur of quips and banter on stage, but make no mistake they can play. Tight vocal harmonies between guitarist and singer Ed Robertson, guitarist/keyboard player Kevin Hearn, drummer Tyler Stewart and Jim Creegan showed the class and sense of melody that bands who have risen up from the rest possess.
Tight vocal harmonies and good acoustics
The sound out front was good too, the Beach Ballroom’s acoustics giving the night a warm feel.
“At this point we want to have fun, go to the limits, push ourselves, indulge ourselves,” Robertson recently said.
This confidence, that comes with making music together over decades, poured off of the stage and washed over an audience who thrived on it.
The home run came with the band’s biggest tunes including Pinch Me, and The Big Bang Theory TV theme tune. The former saw a few items of underwear thrown onto the stage (clean, thank goodness) as is customary at BNL shows.
Exciting enough you’d think, but it was mega-hit One Week and the jaunty If I Had $1,000,000 that got the Ballroom’s sprung floor really bouncing.
They encored with the mellow Light Up My Room rounding off a fine, splendidly odd night. And the band wouldn’t want it any other way.
Terrific.