Seattle – Canada’s indie dream-pop outfit Alvvays graced Capitol Hill’s Barboza the other night, filling the basement with breezy melodies, fuzzy guitar, swirling keyboards, and cheeky lyrics.
Having earned placement on many year-end lists with their debut eponymous album (on Polyvinyl Records)—Best New Bands called it “a contagious work of art”—Alvvays captures an impressive, balanced sound of nostalgic 60’s surf rock and lo-fi 80’s garage pop, with Molly Rankin on vocals and guitar, Kerri MacLellan on keys, Alec O’Hanley on guitar, Brian Murphy on bass, and Phil MacIsaac on drums. What’s most distinctive about the group, however, are the sly, witty lyrics that reflect typical 20-something anxiety over love and relationships. Frontwoman Rankin has penned songs that are at times lovelorn and wistful, other times dark and droll – songs that seemed to resonate with the majority of the Barboza audience, who bobbed their heads and danced all night long.
The five band members – all clad in white Keds – took the stage to strong applause and cheers. “Thanks, look at you!” Rankin said to the audience. “We’re Alvvays. And we’ve always wanted to play in Seattle!”
Kicking off the set with “The Agency Group,” Rankin’s pure, strong vocals (reminiscent of Best Coast’s Bethany Cosentino) rung out over the audience. On “Adult Diversion,” Alvvays created an infectious melody with jangly guitar, warbly synth, and 60’s girl-group harmonies. “If I should fall, act as though it never happened/ I will retreat, and then go back to university,” Rankin tells her object of desire.
“You guys are the best crowd!” Rankin shouted. “We played Portland last night, and you’re better…Somebody put that on Twitter right now!” she joked, a wink at the apparent beef between the Pacific Northwest cities.
“Atop a Cake” finds Rankin at odds with her partner – marriage should be in their future, but it’s been a difficult path to figure out how to get there. “You’d like us on top of a cake, but you won’t let me take a bite…How could I lose control, when you’re driving from the backseat,” Rankin longingly sings accompanied by more jangly guitar and bouncy instrumentals.
Next, “Underneath Us” delivered a darker melody, with distorted synth and drawn out vocals. “Next of Kin” followed appropriately, with its dark, sinister lyrics about her boyfriend drowning in the river. The soaring “Ooh’s” at song’s end are beautiful, yet haunting due to the nature of the song.
“Dives” had a beautiful, rolling guitar, wistful melody, and lovely harmonies. Then Alvvays kicked things into gear with the critical darling, “Archie, Marry Me,” an infectious, charming, pleading tune. And with the lyrics “Too late to go out, too young to stay in,” Rankin captures a lot of 20-something feelings. It was the highest energy of the set, with audience members throwing their hands up and singing along.
“Party Police” was filled with yearning, with the purest vocals of the night. Alvvays closed the set with “Your Type,” a lively, slightly punk-tinged tune with rambunctious drums and energetic vocals, complimented by Rankin’s “Woo’s!”
As Alvvays left the stage, it was clear the audience wanted more. And so for the encore, the quintet marched back onstage for a spirited cover of The Primitives’ “Out of Reach.” They followed with a new song, entitled “Haircut,” which rounded out their performance with strong energy.
Opening the night was Absolutely Free, a trio also from Toronto. The group utilized reverb well to create listenable, atmospheric vocals, and created great movement by playing with rhythms. Influenced by art rock, psychedelia, African polyrhythms, and electronica, Absolutely Free was an absolute delight.
Alvvays continue their North American tour this month before heading to the U.K. and Europe in 2015.
Caitlin Peterkin
With degrees in journalism and music, Caitlin’s written for Paste Magazine, The Chronicle of Higher Education, and MajoringinMusic.com. She loves cheese, laughing at GIFs of corgis, road trip sing-alongs, and connecting with people over good beer and good music.
Latest posts by Caitlin Peterkin (see all)
- 6 New Bands to Catch at Capitol Hill Block Party - July 21, 2016
- Israel Nash – Silver Season - October 7, 2015
- The Season of Israel Nash - October 1, 2015
