Wednesday night, I headed off to The Dakota Tavern. I haven't been to this basement venue since The Raptors won the NBA finals. I walked a bit along Bloor St. and The Ossington Strip before the show. The restaurants on The Strip were onboard again with the street patios whereas businesses elsewhere haven't bothered with many CafeTO setups. It was packed for both outside and inside dining. But in my opinion, it wasn't that convenient to live in the area. The Strip had plenty of restaurants (but no every day cheap eats) and a few other trendy stores. But the laundromat and Home Hardware closed last year. And a lonely convenience store was hanging on for dear life.
I was hoping for a masked audience and prompt sets tonight but neither occurred. It was practically a Dwayne Gretzky show as both bands had alums and several others were in the crowd. Dwayne's bassist Dave Dalrymple fronted Wax Atlantic on vocals, keys, and guitar. I thought it was apt that the few songs he covers for Dwayne included Wonderwall (Oasis) because numbers like Lonely Island and Friends Like This had the same wistful pop lyrics. There were some upbeat tunes but I was expecting more interesting rhythm from a bass player.
One of Carleigh Aikins' signature number with Dwayne was Janis Joplin's Piece of My Heart. Her growly vocals never fails to elicit cheers. So I was a bit concerned when she opened with Halfway Mark which was solidly Taylor Dayne Top-40 radio. But the rest of her songs from Junk Jewelry had more appeal. Some had Amanda Marshall ballad vibes (Pretty Tiger, Letting You Go), others were fun Joplin meets 90s R'n'B tunes (Credit's Due, Good Book). The band was tight but it was the additional harmonies of Meg Contini and Jill Harris (The O'Pears) that made the songs soared. The final Lose My Number was a barn-burner that should be playing on the radio.
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