Photo Credit: LADYLUX

James and I ventured to the Warehouse last week to see Crystal Castles. The opening act was Calgary based band Azeda Booth who turn piercing vocals, glitch effects and dissonant instrumentation into something quite melodic… they were a good fit for the show.  We talked with Jordan (lead singer) after they wrapped up and they mentioned that they had never listened to Crystal Castles but the sound check was 3 hours and the lighting check was 6 hours long… I knew we were in for a big freaking treat.

There was no easing into the show, it started with a virtual attack on the senses from a sporadic white strobe combined with Atari-esque beats and the intensity of front-woman Alice Glass … we were stuck, not because we couldn’t move if we wanted to but because the show was hypnotic.  Traditionally, this 2 person band native to Toronto consists of Alice Glass (vocals) and Ethan Kath (instruments/production), and for the past few years they’ve been busy remixing for the likes of The Bloc Party, Uffie and the Klaxons while hitting every major European music festival (along with being openers for Nine Inch Nails latest tour). This go ’round they had a drummer which certainly did not detract from their sound, but I’m amazed at how he kept up.  I loved that from the get go there was no traditional separation between stage and audience, as Alice spent the better part of the show over the barricade and perched above the crowd, her energy was infectious!

FYI: Crystal Castles is a play on the 80’s cartoon She-Ra’s fortress (to the 80’s illiterate: She-Ra was a spin off of He-Man, and also his twin sister)

I might not be a show for everybody, but as you can fathom from my perspective, it was magic.

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