Last Night's Gig: Wolf Parade at the Kaserne in Basel

...and an Alan Thicke joke. Let's just say as Spencer Krug noted in the middle of the concert "language barrier anyone?". There were a lot of blank faces and confused silence when Alan Thicke was mentioned. It's too bad, the Swiss are missing out on a comedic goldmine.

I got into Wolf Parade a bit later than most (post-Mount Zoomer), but I missed a chance to see them back in April in St. Gallen and I wasn't going to miss them again. If you haven't spent much time with Wolf Parade, I would describe it as electro-pop-punk. Great riffs, but copious use of organs and synths that really add to the composition. As well, both Krug and Dan Boeckner have excellent and incredibly unique voices.

I had seen some video from early concerts and I must say they have improved their live show dramatically. They had a great mix of new stuff (Ghost Pressure, What Did My Lover Say?) and their older favourites (This Heart's on Fire, You Are A Runner And I Am My Father's Son). I was a bit disappointed they didn't play Golden Age which is my favourite tune from their new album. Speaking of which, their new album Expo 86 has both an excellent title (blog admission: I have an excellent childhood photo of me with Expo Ernie, the robot mascot, so I have a ingrained affinity) with a great flow. I am definitely expecting this one to be on the Polaris shortlist next year.

My next show plans are Dan Mangan and The Mountain and the Trees back in Basel on the 27th. And I've now booked my tickets for the Heartland Festival in Vevey. So excited...