Tulip Festival Concert Series - Lowest of the Low

On Monday, the Lowest of the Low played Major’s Field Park, an area just east of Parliament Hill. We missed them earlier this year as a result of poor planning—mine (whenever plans of ours go awry, rest assured it’s not Sarah’s fault.) Their set was part of a series of concerts for the Tulip Festival Concert Series, which is going on this week, and they were third on the bill along with The Golden Dogs (who I don’t know), The Double Pumpers (whose name only serves to disturb me) and headliners The Joel Plaskett Emergency. It makes me lame to admit, but we got there only in time to see the Low and we took off seconds after their encore. As the stage faces east and we’re only a half dozen blocks from the venue, I could actually hear Joel Plaskett from my living room, and I’m a little sad we didn’t stick around

The Low played an amazing set, perfect for the two of us anyhow because Sarah’s into the older stuff where I’m all about the new album. Set list was roughly as follows (we’re sure about the songs but a little fuzzy on the order):

Last, Lost Generation
Darkhorse
Everywhere and Nowhere
Subversives
Your Birthday Party
Save Me, Alice Neel!
Concave
The Sharpest Pain
Winter Sleepers
Dogs of February
Turpentine
Bleed a Little While Tonight
Guiletta the Just
City Full of Cowards
Just About “The Only” Blues
The Last Recidivist
Sales, Cheats, and Liars
…And Then the Riot

It was a rough start, but not the band’s fault. They took the stage and then the gonad MC rattled off forty-five different sponsors before saying something like, “Here they are, from Toronto. They’ve got a new album coming out in September, and it’s called Shakespeare My Butt. Let’s hear it for the Lowest of the Low!” It was sort of a lowlight combined with a highlight because the band just kind of shrugged collectively, smirked, and started to play.

Uncomfortable point number two came from this old jackass who heckled the band between the first three songs after they made a totally innocuous gibe against Americans. (In fact, Steve actually dedicated Your Birthday Party to our American friends and the majority of the anti-American talk came from the crowd, but whatever, the guy continued to have not just a stick but a big, thorny bush up his ass. He was derided, then ignored, then thankfully he just went away.)

Beyond those two incidents, it was a great show. I hadn’t seen them since just after the reunion (Koolhaus, Toronto, don’t ask me the date), and I’d forgotten how good they sound live. I’d also forgotten how quick Ron is on his feet. Steve had some sound issues early on, and as he and a roadie were working on it, Ron was like: “The Americans have cut off Steve’s power,” and “Steve Stanley’s solo album will be coming out any day now.” Just on and on and on. I’d go see these goes play just for the banter.

Since I’ve seen them last they’ve:

• put Lawrence on keyboards
• changed bassists
• rejigged some of the old material
• grown their hair out

The hair doesn’t match the height and volume of the pre-Low days (see: Platinum Blonde, circa 1984), but it’s on the road to Sam Roberts length. Even Dave Alexander, who at most would have a small triangle of shaved hair on the top of his head back in the day, now has nature boy curls.

In short: fantastic. Best Monday night I remember having. I also grabbed a T-shirt, and when I do put it on for the first time I expect to quickly learn that my concert T-shirt days have passed me by—which, of course, won’t stop me.