On Wednesday night starting at 6pm, the band The Hope State hits the front stage at The Cameron House with a full congregation waiting to ease their mind from a long day of work. They have a classic sense of Canadian Folk Music. It is very heartfelt and has an honest way of telling stories. They also contained a very graceful impression of humour.
What I found very quickly was the function of the audience. They were connected and very engaged. The level of loyalty could be felt through the entire room. They had moments of truly having fun conversations just to get to the next song. It was wonderfully random and the audience enjoyed every minute of it. It really felt like it was just one big family reunion without all that weird stuff. This was one of the best connections I have witness with the band and their audience.
I also found out that this band has been doing this for the past 11 years at The Cam. The lyrics to their song were easily remembered and they had quite a bit of sing-along’s, which I even participated in. I wish I knew of this band earlier in life, so I could have a place to chill out on a Wednesday night. I would have had a way to have these guys open for bands like the Skydiggers, Blue Rodeo, or even Neil Young.
If you have nothing better to do on a Wednesday night, go to 408 Queen Street West, just west of Spadina Rd, and kick back with a pint and feel the great impression of community.
Here are some pictures from The Hope State’s performance:
To see the Cameron Houses calendar, go to… http://www.thecameron.com/listings.html
To see when The Hope State is playing next, go to… http://thehopestate.com/