Wednesday, June 17, 2015

Vancouver show review


Review of the Vancouver show from GrayOwl Point:

"Next up were Montreal (by way of Calgary)’s Braids. Their recently released Deep in the Iris LP was just long-listed for the 2015 Polaris Prize – a bit of recognition for which their debut full-length Native Speaker was also considered back in 2011. In light of the recent release, Braids’ entire set consisted of material from Deep in the Iris – not that I could complain, as is easily one of my favourite albums released so far this year! On both Native Speaker and its follow-up, Flourish // Perish, Braids produced dreamlike and ambient soundscapes that swirled and drifted around echo-laden lyrics to dizzying effect, conjuring both ethereal chills and intimate closeness with equal dexterity. Deep in the Iris has made a fundamental shift, pulling Raphaelle Standell-Preston’s dynamic vocals front and centre and letting them guide the emotional flow of each song. Deft live manipulations of reverb, reverse effects, sampling, grain-shifting and delay let the band ratchet up the complexity as needed, letting songs build from their fragile, whispery base structures into veritable skyscrapers of drums, vocals, chords and pads. Set highlights included some stellar work behind the drum kit during “Warm Like Summer” and a downright fierce performance of “Miniskirt.” "

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