Toronto’s Broken Social Scene closed out the band’s first tour in many years last night at the Wellmont Theatre in Montclair, New Jersey.  The show which lasted around 2 hours and spanned their vast music catalogue, highlighted the strengths of a band that clearly loves playing together.  The beauty in what they do comes through in how they seamlessly work through songs that range from indie rock, ska,  experimental jazzy numbers and even punk, but there are no limitations. They can also do the heavier, guitar driven classic jam as well.  Although the band’s studio productions are at a high level, they are one of those bands that you have to see live.  With as many as 9 or 10 players on stage (including a horn section), it could be quite challenging to replicate some of their intricate productions, but they were 100% in sync throughout the show with a consistent energy and enthusiasm that shined throughout their performance.

One of the highlights of the evening was the first live performance of “Mouth Guards of the Apocalypse” from their latest album “Hug of Thunder” which was released with very positive reviews in July, 2017.   This pretty much set the tone for an upbeat, joyous crowd that appreciated getting to see a band of this caliber at the Wellmont Theatre. The band admitted that they didn’t know what to expect, but were very pleased with the venue and crowd.  I have to say it was a pleasure to see how much the band was enjoying the moment.

Personal highlights include the performance of “Shampoo Suicide,” and of course “World Sick,” but as expected the crowd loved classics such as”Texico Bitches” and “Almost Crimes.”  On the brilliant “Shampoo Suicide,” the dueling vocals and the heavy guitar riffs made for a blissful moment of perfection. Overall, the set list was pretty balanced with a slight lean to songs from the amazing album, “You Forgot it in People” which was released in 2002.

The best line of the night was from Kevin Drew, “This is the encore. We don’t leave the stage and come back for the encore.”  Let’s hope they don’t leave the stage for another long hiatus. With the successful release of “Hug of Thunder” and this tour, they should continue to write music and perform for a very long time.