What: Iceberg Alley Performance Tent
When: June 23, 2023
Featuring With Violet, The Beaches, and Walk Off The Earth
Night 9 of the Iceberg Alley Performance tent featured With Violet, The Beaches, and Walk Off The Earth.
Starting the night off were With Violet, a band hailing from St. John’s, NL. This alt-pop band offers an electrical musical experience; with Sarah Newell on vocals and saxophone, Pete on vocals and keyboards, Matthew Cadigan on guitar, Spencer FitzGerald on bass, and Hunter Madden on drums.
The band played numerous original tracks including “With Money,” “Give My Heart Away,” and “Venice Beach.” Each of these tracks boasted an intricate sound and the creative addition of saxophone. Pete and Newell not only shared the vocals on most tracks, but they continued to switch up positioning, keeping the audience on their toes.
They also played some catchy tunes from their newest EP coming out this summer. For those who were not familiar with the band, they played a few cover tracks to showcase their talents. The first, Måneskin’s “Beggin'” came close to the beginning of the set, with Paramore’s “Ain’t It Fun” rounding up the set.
Since the release of their debut album, Long Story Short, in 2021 they have had great success through streaming platforms, local gigs, and nominations for MusicNL awards. For anyone local to St. John’s, make sure to take the time to check them out. You won’t be disappointed.
Next up were The Beaches. This was one band I could not wait to see again. Formed in Toronto in 2013, The Beaches are a Canadian rock band consisting of Jordan Miller (lead vocals, bass), Kylie Miller (guitar, backing vocals), Leandra Earl (keyboards, guitar, backing vocals), and Eliza Enman-McDaniel (drums).
The Beaches started their set with ‘Late Show’, the title track from their 2017 debut album (and winner of the 2018 Juno Award for Breakthrough Group of the Year). Singles from this album “Money” and “T-shirt” (a track that hit number one on the BIllboard Canada Rock chart and was certified Gold by Music Canada) were also played throughout the night.
“Want What You Got” saw the audience as backup singers. This catchy turn saw those in the tent dancing along as they took part. To introduce “Grow Up Tomorrow,” the audience helped sing “Happy Birthday” to Kylie, who would be celebrating her birthday the following day (June 24th). This catchy tune is definitely one that will make you want to dance along.
“Orpheus,” a slower, more mellow tune was also played. This was sent out to all the couples, even though they jokingly claimed to hate couples because they were three single, heartbroken girls. Other tracks performed included “My People,” “Fascination,” “Highway Six,” and “Let’s Go.”
The set also featured some newer tracks including “Everything is Boring” and “Blame Brett.” “Blame Brett” was sent out to all those who have ever experienced some heartache. This track is super catchy and has been stuck in my head ever since the show. It has already hit number 4 on the Canadian charts!
The Beaches have an impressive resume to date, with two EPs released from 2013-2014 before signing with Island Records to release their debut album Late Show. Following this, they released two more EPs and later a compilation album composed of these two EPs. This album won the 2022 Juno Award for Rock Album of the Year.
The Beaches ended their set with “Gold,” a catchy tune to make sure the audience would not forget who they were. For those who did not get enough of The Beaches, watch out for their second studio album Blame My Ex set to be released in September 2023.
The final spot of the night went to Walk Off The Earth, a Canadian indie pop band from Burlington, Ontario. The group is best known for their intricate covers with a multitude of various instruments. But don’t be fooled, they have some great hits of their own.
Walk Off The Earth members include Gianni “Luminati” Nicassio, Sarah Blackwood, Joel Cassady, David “Tokyo” Speirs, and Adam Michael. Their organization and stage presence is like no other. How they keep everything so organized and how they are able to know what sound to add and when is amazing. Blackwood’s energy on stage is mesmerizing, as she bounces around from instrument to instrument to make just the right sound.
Their set started with an introduction, as the crowd cheered and the band came on stage. Through this intro, they showcased their creative musical arrangements before continuing with “Fire in my Soul,” one of their catchy original tracks that was released in 2016 and certified gold. Without missing a beat, they continued on to an upbeat version of Gnarls Barkleys “Crazy.”
They played other original tracks such as “Bet On Me” where the audience got to join them by singing along to certain parts. “I’ll Be There” started with just a basic melody and Blackwood on vocals before bringing in more instruments to create an intricate melody. The audience erupted with cheers. They also played one of their newer songs, “Whatever,” while asking the audience to participate and sing in the chorus with them. Vocals were shared and harmonies were made by all in the band. This is sure to be another catchy hit.
“My Stupid Heart” has been gaining a lot of airplay over the past few months. This song often features the ‘Luminati Kids’. They often bring them on stage with them during these shows but it was too late here.
I have been following their videos online for a while and was excited to hear them cover “Teenage Dirtbag” by Wheatus. I always thought this was such a catchy tune and loved their version. Their cover of “What’s Love Got to Do With It” also caused cheers to erupt from the audience.
Their audience engagement was memorable, as they brought the audience into the show any time they could. They created a Tik Tok from the show (which has since been posted) for people to cherish for years to come. They also gave away a ukulele, which they apparently do at every show. The lucky individual was one who had seen many shows before and had travelled for the show (to my understanding). What a memorable way to commemorate the visit! After singing a melody of various songs, Walk Off The Earth finished their set with “Hold On” and “Rule the World,” a wonderful way to end the evening and make sure that it was one the patrons of the tent would not soon forget.
