The islands impress at west end cultural centre
Peninsulas, archipelagos sadly neglected
TIMOTHY BROWN STAFF
PHOTO: BRIAN GAGNE
Bright lights and crowds of people. An empty stage begging to be played on. The people crowd in, filling the West End Cultural Centre. All anxious to see the Islands, the band that’s captured the hearts of indie kids everywhere. People continue to pile in, past the doors that tell them the Besnard Lakes won’t be playing, past the people taking the tickets, and right towards that stage begging to be played on. It’s getting warmer inside, voices are growing louder, and the lights are growing dimmer. A tall man enters the stage, people start to cheer, and he starts to talk.
The man pacing back and forth across the stage, talking to the crowd through hand gestures and eccentric rambling is Giovanni Marks (aka Subtitle). He’s a rapper based out of Los Angeles, off of the GSL (Gold Standard Labs) label. He quickly finishes with his opening remarks. Now it’s just him, the audience, and the reason he’s on stage. Telling the sound guy to start the music, he begins to weave through calculated math beats and intricate lyrics. A few members of the crowd, thrown off by the fact that this is hip hop and not quirky indie rock, decide to leave, a few others take is as a sort of joke, a novelty. The rest watch as Subtitle plays one song after another, pacing across the stage, telling his stories, entertaining them with words and beats.
The set ends, he gives his thanks, exits the stage, and the lights grow brighter. People rush for the door, wanting relief from the heat inside, or maybe to simply fulfill that craving for a cigarette. Still, huddling close to the stage, like people trying to stay warm in a house with no heat in the middle of winter, fans wait for the Islands, not wanting to give up their perfect spot. People flood back in from the cold, back to their seats, back to the places where they were standing, back to bar for another drink. Once again the lights dim, and five people walk onto the stage wearing all-white outfits, people start yelling, cheering, and screaming.
If one were to make an educated guess, through the process of deduction, one would say that these five people dressed in white were the Islands. They would not be wrong. No matter what people were doing, they’re now watching, excited, anxious. Without any introduction, the Islands jump into their first song. Beautiful, subtle, pop music being played with passion. They instantly capture the crowd, most of whom are by now dancing or moving to the music.
The Islands have come a long way from the days when they were the Unicorns, kids having fun on stage, playing ridiculous songs, wearing capes, and throwing rotten bananas into the crowd. Their sound has matured, and now they’re on stage, led by Nick Diamonds. They play with violins, keyboards, guitars and drums, and they’re making people dance. Their music floats through the air and dances in people’s eardrums. They play song after song, they bring Subtitle out on stage for a song, and they finish their set leaving the crowd in a frenzy. They still want more, cheering and stomping the ground, even after an brilliant encore. They all know it won’t happen, but it’s always worth another try. Soon enough, people understand that there’ll be no more performances tonight, they all file past the people taking the tickets, past the doors that now have a sign saying “Sold Out,” and back out into the cold.
