REVIEW
What: Marianas Trench with Down With Webster and Anami Vice
When: Thursday
Where: Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre
Rating: 1 1 /2 (out of five)
Pop acts that skew to a younger demographic have it made.
Not only do they get to feel like rock stars for a bit - the length of their dominance commensurate with their hit quotient - these groups get to pilfer without persecution from Concert Cliche 101, the vital handbook of every band that counts MuchMusic as its target audience.
Young audiences don't sweat over minor details, which makes things even easier for the bands on stage. Give fans a beat to dance to, a song they're familiar with, and some cute boys to scream about and all is right in their world. With that in mind, Marianas Trench must have felt on top of the world at the Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre, the second-to-last stop on their inaugural headlining arena tour.
The 3,743 fans assembled before them worshipped their every hair flip, even when they had good reason to complain. The Vancouver group has its share of video and radio hits, but the gulf between their overproduced studio work and paper-thin live performance is such that I rushed for my earplugs on countless occasions.
Former Victoria resident Anami Vice (a Vancouver pop rapper managed by Marianas Trench frontman Josh Ramsay) performed admirably with a show-opening 25-minute set while flanked by a back-up singer, drummer and bassist. Vice was decent, but could have used some of the gang from Toronto's Down With Webster, who very nearly stole the show with 45 minutes.
Marianas Trench was less lovable.
There were a lot of bells and whistles fans seemed to appreciate. The band did its best, which was enough for its audience. And at this point in their career, that's all they need to offer.
