If you have never been to Longboat Hall, you should go. This is a historic space that now brings in new music for Toronto to enjoy. The space is in the basement of the Great Hall at Queen and Dovercourt.

I went to see two excellent live bands that really complimented each other. The first band is our own, A Short Walk to Pluto. I have been watching this band for the last couple of years and I am really enjoying their growth as a confident band that will add flavour to our city. When I first saw them, they played cover songs at Tail of the Junction. They were a tight outfit back then and I knew they worked hard at their craft.

Today, this band is working hard at original music, and they really did showcase it opening for Brass Camel. They walked on both excited and a bit nervous. Emma, the lead singer came roaring on with a loud: How are you Toronto!!

They kicked in “Phantom Lover” and then came “Back Around”. Her energy was strong as she played it up to the photographers and to the front row of the crowd. 

Lately, I have noticed they were promoting a cover song they have been working on for a while now. Well, I was listening to this excellent extended intro and then they slipped into Tears for Fears huge song, “Everybody wants to rule the World”. They changed the tempo of the song slightly and gave it a straighter rock feel to it. Very well played…

They finished their set with the attitude of a band that would like to headline the Longboat Hall next time. They played their biggest song to date, “You are not the only one”.

Here are the photos of A Short Walk to Pluto:

The Return of Brass Camel to Toronto would be a success. I saw dedicated fans and new fans walking into the Hall to see what the buzz was all about.

I have to admit, the last time they came to Toronto, I watched some of their videos to get a sense of what they do. Well, no amount of video watching is going to prepare you for their live performance.

They came back to conquer Toronto and pick up new fans along the way. This is a band that will hit you like a tornado and keep your head spinning throughout the evening.

The band clearly have worked on all the great aspects of classic prog rock. They can have fun with the more cartoon flavoured side of Progressive storytelling and then go into a full-on onslaught of instrumentation that doesn’t feel quite human. They push the boundaries of speed and time bending signatures. It can feel as if they could twist your head off and just dunk it in a basketball hoop.

I loved the moment when the guitar players left the stage to leave the other players impress us. When they returned, they tossed two very large brass balls into the audience for us to play with.

In fact, an unexpected moment happened as an audience member thought it was a good idea to move around and use his hand-held bubble gun to add ambience to the show. Well, it worked. Everyone seemed to enjoy the Bubble Guy! Go to my Instagram page to see him there.

Near the end of the set, Brass camel paid homage to Canada’s greatest Prog band, Rush. They did a medley of music which included, Rush’s “La Villa Strangiato”, Yes’, “Heart of the Sunrise”. They squeezed in some “Watcher of the Skies” and even “King for the day”!

I will end this off simply. If you are a hard-core Prog Rocker, this is your band. They have all the amazing chops to keep your complicated soul satisfied. Their musicianship is some of the best I have heard in a long time, and they are Canadian! Support Canadian music! We have the talent, and the Camel is grabbing the Brass ring!

Here are the photos of Brass Camel: