It was a sweaty night in the small venue of Le Divan Orange for the MEG festival, but the music made it all worth it. Montreal’s own Elsiane headlined the late night show with Doom Squad playing just before them, setting the stage for a great night. People got the were crowded into the packed venue by the time Doom Squad started at 10:30, flooding the room with their psychedelic ambiance.
The band, consisting of three members each on different instruments (varying from the drums to the flute to the recorder), all had the feel of the music pumping out of their bodies. As their beats played they swayed to the sounds that couldn’t help but get people moving and dancing. The crowd was obviously satisfied with their non stop energy and it was apparent that the band was having just as much fun as they danced the night away. These guys know how to put on a show, get the crowd going and have a good time. A great set opener for the lovely Elsiane.
This Montreal native started out her show with just the sounds of her signature howl, her drummer and a keyboard. We could tell she was a crowd favorite as soon as she got on stage and I heard the screams. People were ready to see Elsiane. Her naturally high pitched voice beautifully highlighted the mixture of sounds we began to hear and then the beat dropped and the adventure began. She sang from the soul as her voice rattled listener’s bones, echoing Elsiane’s Peruvian rootes.
After a few songs she admitted to being thrown off a bit by how amazing the crowd was before bringing out her guitarist. The rest of the set was and the full band began pumping out a melodic and enticing sound. They did not play her music exactly as on the album, but you could tell that all three members were so tight that they could easily play with the boundaries of improvisation.
