Foxy Shazam Ups the Quirk Factor At the Town Ballroom
Who: Foxy Shazam, Larry And His Flask
Where: Town Ballroom
When: June 25, 2014
In all honesty, a Foxy Shazam live show is well worth the price of admission
regardless of the set list. While what I was looking for on Wednesday night at
the Town Ballroom was a set littered with tunes take off their incredible The Church Of Rock and Roll album, what
I got was a set filled with the bands entire Gonzo record, and I was more than OK with it.
For me, this show was a bit ironic. Ironic because I first
fell in love with Foxy after seeing them open for the Darkness in Toronto, and
now I have fallen in love with their opening act, Larry And His Flask, a perennial
Warped Tour favorite who are a unique act in their own right. Their blend of
garage punk and American bluegrass is a sight to behold and, even though this
was my first time hearing these guys, I was impressed to say the very least.
Seeing Jamin Marshall playing
drums standing up was a highlight for me as was Jeshua Marshall’s work on the standup bass (he was, at times, somehow managing to play it like a normal bass).
Foxy didn't waste much time in getting to the stage, and
this smallish crowd (by comparison, the last time they were in town they sold
out the Mohawk Place) was eager to see them. They proceeded to perform their
entire Gonzo album from start finish,
from the opening title track all the way through to closer “Story Told.” After
that the band evenly committed their time to tracks off their other albums, Introducing Foxy Shazam (“Yes! Yes ! Yes!”), Foxy Shazam (“Oh Lord,” “Killin’ It,” “The Only Way To My Heart”)
and perhaps, at least in this reviewers eyes, most surprisingly, only three
tracks off The Church Of Rock And Roll
(“I Like It,” “Holy Touch,” “The Temple”). The band chose to end their set with
Major League Baseball’s postseason anthem “Unstoppable” as opposed to their hit
single “I Like It,” an interesting choice for sure, but the crowd didn't seem
to mind at all.
Like I said, Foxy is a
sight to behold regardless of what songs they’re playing. From the Mick
Jagger/David Bowie-inspired spastic maneuvers of enigmatic frontman Eric
Sean Nally and shirtless dance skills of horn specialist Alex Nauth to the
maniacal keyboard work of Schuyler Vaughn White (seriously, at one point he was carrying the
keyboard on his back whilst playing), this band is one that needs to be
experienced live.
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