That's One Way To Say Goodbye

I left my East-End rental in the morning but I still had a few more days in Toronto. Since the check-in for my West-End rental was at 3 pm, there were several hours to kill. In normal June weather, I'd grab brunch and then relax at Dufferin Grove. I did have some luggage but they weren't bulky so going to the last day of the Do West street festival would also be doable. But with cool wind and rain, I had to be indoors. I ended up at Union Station watching passengers board buses, trains, or heading to the UP Express for the airport.

I had skipped lunch so after dropping off my stuff at the 2nd floor studio, I headed over to Laziza for a veggie plate. At $14.99, it wasn't quite the $8.99 deal a decade ago, but it was still a hefty takeout container full of rice, a variety of fresh greens, fried cauliflower, eggplant, and potatoes. This would normally be two meals but since this was my "linner", I ate the bulk of it. I spent the rest of the afternoon lying in bed. Who knew that just sitting in a busy transport hub could be tiring?

In the evening, I went to The Burdock for a show. Mattie Leon opened the night with songs about loved ones who have passed on (Marigold) and telling people you love them (Father's Wedding Speech). His sweet tone was a good match for the folkie, earnest set. I saw headliner Chris and Nicole in 2019 just before the pandemic. They were releasing their debut EP but also saying goodbye as Nicole was heading off to law school. 5 years later, they were finishing up their first LP and saying goodbye again. This time round, their lead guitarist was packing up his graduate degree and heading out west.

Chris seemed to be the main songwriter and his recent worry included reaching a plateau in his craft (Hunky Dory) after 10 years of writing. Nicole teased him that he was the type of dork who spends New Year's Eve writing songs like Old Friend and Take What You Need, Take What You Want instead of going out. Their voices blended well and the band supported them on numbers that sometimes had a touch of alt-country and sometimes a bluesy feel. For the new songs, they did an homage to power pop (Stay) and a few sing-along numbers.

It was a full crowd that were appreciative and good-natured. That'd be a good sign, but like their show at The Painted Lady, it was all family and friends. So it was hard to gauge the progress of their musical career. Were they building a fan base? It could be that in today's industry, a project like Chris and Nicole can only be a side-gig outside of day jobs as UX designer and lawyer-in-waiting. Hopefully, I'll hear more buzz about them soon instead of in another 5 years.