Reviews:: The Burning Hell Live @ Gus Pub

Last night showed a nice influx of Upper Canadian talent showed up in Halifax. Wax Mannequin, Jenny Omnichord, Richard Laviolette and, as the title of this post indicates, The Burning Hell. I had never been to Gus before, but considering it is a drinkin' man's pub, complete with a glassed-in video lotto room and it rests at ground zero of hipster Halifax, I had no idea who (if anyone) would show up.

The crowd was actually bigger than expected, and included a homeless, body building song writer, a loud talking couple on a date (complete with a cell phone clipped to the belt) and two old machine playing drunks, but the rest of the people there were ready to have a good time. Those familiar with The Burning Hell probably expected Mathias Kom to stand on stage and wax melancholic with the support of his trusted uke.

Instead, the stage was packed with people and they ripped through an energy filled set that had the crowd dancing and started with a nod to Phil Collins. The songs took new life, thanks in large part to the a fiddle, bass, omnichord, slide guitar, synth and group vocals that were added to the set. Fan favorites like Grave Situation Pt. 1 & 2 lost a bit of their quirky charm, but the band more than made up for that with the energy and smiles they played with. Sweat was flying and the thick, full sound really surprised me. It's very rare that the end of a set comes and I want the band to keep playing, but four bands means shorter set times.

For those heading to Sappy this weekend, I'd say The Burning Hell a must see.