New York – Montreal band Heat played the first of two New York City headlining shows at hip East Village hotspot Elvis Guesthouse. The quartet, comprised of Susil Sharma, Matthew Fiorentino, Raphael Bussieres and Alex Crow, are touring in support of their recently re-released EP Rooms (out on Kitsune and reviewed here by BestNewBands), and their dual New York/Brooklyn stops come following a short UK stint of dates with garage rock up-and-comers Spring King and prior to an extensive homecoming tour in their native Canada.
“We’re Heat. We’re from Montreal”, said Sharma to the basement venue of Elvis Guesthouse, before launching into “This Life”, the first track off of Rooms. With choruses of “I’m fuckin’ free man”, the band executed a set that turned the closely quartered space into what could easily be filmed as a well-attended house party where gig attendees were sprawled across the venue; both inches away from the band as well as across booths and benches overlooking the small stage space.
This relaxed and easygoing atmosphere was pervasive throughout the whole set, amidst spontaneous moments of rowdiness that added to rather than detracted from the band’s presence. A pair of gig-goers piggybacked across the stage, and one particular fan continued to catcall “America!” in response to Heat’s comments in reference to their Canadian nationality. Despite their Montreal heritage, the quartet’s sound was perfectly suited to the crowd, which appreciated Sharma’s lyrical assertions about being “25 and at the edge of my life”.
Predictably, tracks from Rooms featured prominently on the setlist, but the band also utilized the gig to introduce two new tracks, both in a similar vein to those on Rooms. The group has already proved on their EP a grasp of the niche of feel-good rock and roll sentiment and, if their new songs are any indication, they’re well on their way to perfecting the craft of carving out succinct gems encapsulating these moments.
Playing stopover gigs in New York can often prove a challenge for bands just garnering traction in the national and international music scene, but with little demand for attention from any of the band members other than the tunes they played, Heat established themselves as a band that’s able to earn genuine enthusiasm from those in attendance. The sultry and carefree guitar riffs from the band shaped a sound fairly impossible not to like; “likable”, in fact, perhaps best describes the general ambiance of both the band and their music in the best way possible. Full of an inner optimism, it’s a band that exemplifies the perfect soundtrack for summer, nights out and intimate spaces; and this candid romanticism of everyday twenty-something life was perfectly represented and channeled in this crowded, dimly lit East Village space.
Keep up with Heat on their Facebook and Twitter pages.
Photo of Heat live by Ruby Hoffman
Ruby Hoffman
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