Broken Social Scene always kick ass live -- but it's a loving, euphoric ass-kicking. At last night's show in Indy, though, things got a little tense. Stereogum reader Josh was there and posted this to his blog:
Last night?s show at the Vogue in Indy sounded great? Amy Milian was present, but no Leslie? boo. Anyway, there was a bit of tension on stage? in the midst of "Almost Crimes" the lead guitarist/backing vocals missed his queue? Kevin Drew immediately stopped the song waving his hands in the air demanding everyone to stop. He looks down the line at the unabashed guitarist (not sure who? face to name thing) and says something along the lines of, ?I guess someone doesn?t want to sing his part tonight. Fine, that?s the end of the song.? They move on to the next. Drama!
Considering how much fun they always seem to have (and how ecstatic they were at their Best-Show-Of-'06 set at Lolla), that does seem surprising. But it's not the first sign that things may be souring in camp BSS. From a two-man operation, the "collective" now has a roster of seventeen, which is bound to be both logistically unruly and creatively stifling. Brendan spoke to the issue in no uncertain terms (via Creative Loafing):
It's time to revamp the program. It's hard to grow as a unit when the unit is not consistent. It can be exciting, but I think it's reached its limitation in that regard. This tour is, in essence, a chance to play places in America we haven't before, one last chance to give the show to the people, as it were ... for it to make sense to everyone, there really needs to be some tightening of screws here and there. It's not like we're abandoning what we've done or don't feel proud of it, but there are just so many variables that we can deal with on a day-to-day basis.
Having a circus-sized band has always been part of the BSS charm, but it sounds like the "collective" mentality may have run its course. If it means more studio work and a prolonged touring life, then we're all for it. But could the Scene be the same sans revolving door of Canadian indie rock all stars? We sure fucking hope so! But we refuse to overreact. If you know something we don't, drop us with some knowledge. If you need us, we'll be sitting in the dark with You Forgot It on repeat.
