If you don’t know who Bywater Call is yet, you should. This is a band reaching for the new level of success, and in my humble opinion will reach it. They just released their third album called Shepherd and played their last two intimate and sold out shows of the year at The Rivoli. The band will be back in the New Year to continue touring, so make sure you go out and experience this amazing Toronto talent.

Meghan Parnell, who is the lead vocalist walked out in a silver sequenced dress and presented “Sweet Maria” to the delight of a mixed audience of loyal fans and newcomers who have picked up on the whispering that they were in for a sweet treat.

Within a few songs you become enraptured in the sweet nectar that comes from the versatility of the band. You will be attuned to the Blues, Southern Rock, Soul and Gospel. You may spend some quality time in your head as you vacation down in New Orleans. The horn section really helps with that emotional journey. They don’t bolster their sound where they may be over the top, but they sit right at the edge with the rest of the band to give you that wall of sound that washes over you so pleasantly.

Early on the in the show they had a grand opening that somehow sat between The Eurythmics, “Would you lie to me” and Jimi Hendrix with Sass Jordan on vocals. That is one hell of a deadly combo to rev up your soul.

For some of the audience members that I spoke with after the show talked about making it through a tough year. This show became a sort of cleansing for them to move on into next year. I was amazed that I talked to people that came a long way to see this show. Right at the front of the stage was a couple who came in from New Brunswick to catch this final performance of the year.

The band let us know they were filming these two shows for a future live concert. I don’t know what format they are going to present this in, but I will let you know as soon as I find out. I was really happy to know I will be part of their history, as well as the people who made the far trek to be at these shows.

Throughout their two sets, each member of the band had a chance to shine with a solo. Each solo brought everyone into a new heightened awareness of joy and absolution. These were moments of the extended jam sessions that just built you up into a self-frenzy of elation.

They pulled out a new song that they have only tried three times called, “Clutter”. It was a slower song that pooled the crowd into a pensive mood. Well, whatever this band is doing, they seem to have a solid formula for excellent song structure. It felt like they were shaping yet another killer track right in front of us.

Another strength this band has is recreating classic songs to fit their style. Thee band won the crowd over with the embraceable classic, “Love the one you’re with”. They did an excellent extended jam with the Band’s “The Weight”. They really added some fine swagger in this version. Let’s just say if the Band collaborated with the Black Crowes, this would be the product of their creation.

The moment that truly electrified the crowd was during an extended jam, when out of the blue you were steamrolled by the Zeppelin monster known as Kashmir! With the large keyboard sound and Meghan carving the air with her crisp and raspy vocals, she sliced us open with the precision of a soulful scalpel.

The evening finally came to a close with a song called, “Let it roll”, which felt like a nod to Dr John and even he Band. The final song was quite delicate, but it seemed to really showcase Meghan’s vocal versatility.

It was a real treat to see this band in such an intimate setting. I fully believe nights like this will become fewer and fewer over the next couple of years as this band will gain momentum to play larger rooms. Deservedly so…

Here is Bywater Call in action: