Dragonette - April 3, 2008 @ The Phoenix in Toronto

The evening for this concert began on a strange note – my girlfriend was in town for the week visiting and we spent the day at Niagara Falls, so by the time we got home I had to choose between freshening up and seeing the opening act.  Feeling gross and my hair frizzy from the mist, I opted for the former as I was supposed to meet up with my friend at a salsa club once the show was over.   

The strangeness is this: I love opening bands.  They were often all I would hear when I previously worked at a concert hall – few people buy drinks or snacks when music is playing, so there was minimal distraction as these bands performed.   Once the main act started their set we would often get the green light to shut everything down and clean up, so the first couple songs were all I ever really heard unless I stuck around afterwards.  Sometimes openers suck; sometimes they are better entertainment than the headliners; 95% of the time I have no idea who they are and just want to hear their musical offerings. 

This was my first time attending a show at The Phoenix, so when I came to the first entrance of the building with the right address, seeing a commercial office space threw me off a little.  I decided to keep walking on, and if I didn’t find it I was going to go salsa dancing, but thankfully – and to my relief – the door was just past the small office building.  Then the guy at the door asked me for my ID, lo and behold I didn’t have it.  By this time I had forgotten how self-conscious I felt in my new dress and just wanted to get inside before Dragonette took the stage.  Since it was an all-ages show, I joined the 18 and under fans in front of the stage ready to let the evening’s tunes carry away my troubles since I couldn’t drown them in a drink or two. 

The crowd was certainly ready for the band to come out – they were chanting “DRAG-ON-ETTE” and there were false-start screams at least twice.  The electric pop playing over the speakers turned into a muted “I Get Around” and the real screaming erupted as the drummer, Joel Stouffer, bassist and producer, Dan Kurtz, guitarist, Will Stapleton, and singer Martina Sorbara entered the stage and started pumping out a heavy, very danceable, beat.   

I could tell already their performance would suit my mood – there was a certain detachment they evoked where I could let go of everything I worried about, yet they kept it fun and the audience involved.  The first song, “Jesus Doesn’t Love Me”, was a good choice to slowly ease the crowd into the true sound of Dragonette, and with a smooth transition into “Shock Box” the energy of the audience kept rising.   

Martina’s image on the stage reminds me very much of Lori Petty and her character Tyler in the movie “Point Break”.  She’s a petite girl with spunk – the same big eyes and grin, has an in-your-face attitude shown clearly by the lyrics she belts out, and she’s the only girl in the group.  The image strays slightly when it comes to the band that backs her – they definitely gave the impression that they know she is the focal point and played their hearts out to make her look good. 

When Dragonette launched into their third song, “Competition”, I got right into the catchy, suggestive nature of it.  Martina’s voice is gripping when she lets it go to sing the melodic parts of the tune (or in any other song for that matter), and the harmonies throughout were both satisfying and seamless.  “True Believer” was next and this song hinted of The Knife’s “Marble House”, by somewhat matching the tempo and structure of the song.   

In between the fourth and the fifth song, Martina spoke to the audience and amused me by using a saying I haven’t heard since junior high: ‘holy schnikies’.  I couldn’t help but smile – and that smile widened as “Don’t Touch My Things” started up!  My first impression was “here they are!”  This is exactly the attitude I was waiting for; a dark, subtle dominatrix feel that broke the politeness barrier and rocked out with a deeper sound.  The bridge featuring the synthesizer was appropriately climactic, though perhaps too much for Dan, who switched from bass to synthesizer for this song, because he knocked the instrument over when the song was done. 

Finally, having felt their true attitude, writing notes about their concert just wasn’t acceptable to me anymore.  I put down my writing tools and headed to the dance floor.  Their song “Take It Like a Man” had progressive beats and the right ‘happy’ chords that enticed me to let loose and freely dance, yet it was able to command a consciousness to keep a feminine control.  The overall sassy sex appeal of Dragonette’s music contributes to this feeling.  I remained in the middle of the dance floor during the rest of their regular set which contained subtle influences of No Doubt with a pop-reggae feel, and Britney Spears (or rather the producers and artists who make music for Britney Spears). 

Right before they kicked off the last song, “I Get Around”, Martina mentioned that this was the first show they had scalpers outside selling tickets.  Apparently this is a monumental occurrence in the timeline of a band (especially from the way she made it sound), and is a good indication of their expanding popularity.  They demonstrated a high comfort level with the radio-friendly single which was obvious from the first note; however I wasn’t a fan of how they reworked the chorus. 

Dragonette, loving the support they received from us Canadians, were more than fair game for an encore.  They only made the audience wait a minute or two, and then treated us to two extra pieces – “Get Lucky” and a cover of Wolfmother’s “Woman”.  It was impressive to hear how well these two songs separated their influences, only to highlight them perfectly.  One of the opening bands, Sweet Things, returned to the stage to collaborate on “Get Lucky”, a bouncy, happy pop song that would have been enough to please the crowd as an encore.  This duet of sorts made me aware of an opening band I’m sorry to have missed, but will be looking for at future shows – whether they be the opener or headliner. 

Sweet Things exited the stage after a few more cheers from the audience, and then Dragonette finished off the night with the Guitar Hero rock anthem, “Woman”.  While the style of the regular set stayed within the same electro-pop that defines them, witnessing their ability to personalize a great rock song makes me excited to hear what they will put on their next album.  I’ve been a fan of Martina Sorbara since discovering her single Bonnie & Clyde II years ago, and love what Dragonette has put forth – where will the next fiery trail they blaze bring their music?