<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n I was surprised that only the floor of L\u2019Olympia was open with the above mezzanine completely blocked off. Perhaps there was another show (or several) or perhaps Andy Shauf is no longer as big in Eastern Canada as I expected. Regardless, this made the evening more intimate\u2014perfect for Shauf\u2019s music. The set up was seated as well, another reprieve from the usual standing-for-dear-life concerts I have been attending.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Shauf appeared on stage, behind a microphone covered in vegetation. Actually, most of the mics had plant life attached to them. He jumped into \u201cWasted On You,\u201d the opener to his recent album, Norm<\/em>. It sounded exactly like it does on record, almost to a tee. The first five or six songs were all from Norm<\/em>\u2014what could be considered one of his darker down-tempo records, perhaps following a stalker named Norm? The character of Norm appears throughout the record, and his desire for love may or may not be coming from an unhinged mind.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Shauf only leaves breadcrumbs in his simplistic day-to-day life narratives, like opening a book to his choose your own adventure novel. He also loves to end his songs halfway through the story with a lyrical phrase like \u201cJeremy walks over and, to my surprise, Sherry puts her arm around his side,\u201d in his sad boy, the guy at the party, ode \u201cQuite Like You,\u201d from 2018\u2019s The Party<\/em>. It leaves you guessing with his music, and live it\u2019s pretty fantastic. Maybe it\u2019s because many of his songs come from a solemn state, from someone who is usually on the fringes of \u201cnormal society.\u201d We\u2019ve all felt like that at one time or another and Shauf always sings from the perspective of the sad clown, or let’s call him the sad magician.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The lighting for the show seemed to be reflective of Shauf\u2019s general vibe and interaction with the crowd. You could never quite see his face due to the shadows being projected onto his figure, and whenever someone called at him from the crowd, he usually whispered, \u201cThank you.\u201d The lighting also went with the vegetation theme, when, at times, Andy seemed like he was singing and playing his acoustic guitar obscured, inside a hedge of leaves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I wouldn\u2019t be surprised if Shauf has played whole sets without even acknowledging the crowd in an almost Nick Drake style. He seems like a very reserved, keeps-to-himself guy who, even a decade into his successful indie career, is still reconciling with his fame.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n His band didn\u2019t miss a beat, and the bass clarinet, bass guitar, jazzy drums, and sultry keyboards added to the calming, but grooving atmosphere. There was also a fantastic, low-key drum solo that the crowd was not expecting.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Shauf of course finished with \u201cThe Magician,\u201d during his one-song encore and left the theatre feeling warm and sated. I\u2019d recommend anyone interested in laid-back, jazzy, baroque pop to check out Andy\u2019s next appearance in Montreal.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" With the nature of my job, I\u2019ve been to many live shows as of late, and all of that excitement and potent energy can definitely take its toll, mentally and physically. So it\u2019s safe to say that I really appreciated the rather laid-back, quaint, and tranquil set from Saskatchewan\u2019s gifted, sometimes almost Lynchian, baroque-pop storyteller, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1197,"featured_media":96247,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":""},"categories":[8152],"tags":[],"genre":[],"salle":[],"ville":[],"class_list":["post-96246","gig_review","type-gig_review","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-critiques-de-concerts-en"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/panm360.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/StephanBoissonneault-AndyShauf-4.jpg\")
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