By Ryan Haughey
The Good Will Social Club housed one amazing show on the night of Friday March 2nd. As music goers began to patter through the doors, you could feel the positive energy indicate that it was going to be a great night. The show was put on as a charity event for Hospitality House and NEEDS. Hut Hut, the band formerly known as Boats, played their first show of 2018. Even after almost a year long hiatus, the band showed that they could still rock the house! Pumped up by the two opening bands – the shy but powerful Merin and the straight up indie punk rock Spooky Eyes – the audience was in complete ecstasy by the end of the show.
Kicking off the night was Merin. This charming group quickly brought audience members forward toward the stage. Their songs were simple but never lost the crowd’s interest. They built up and up until the endings which left lasting impressions.
If the tongue in cheek playfulness of the band didn’t come through in their songs, it definitely did in their song introductions. “This song is about how as I get older I get fatter and sadder,” singer, Cole Zachary introduced the song and began to sing. The first lyrics were “As I get older and fatter, I try not to get sadder.”
The lyrics were memorable and easy to understand. Their music was soothing and uplifting, yet at times melancholic. At other times, the band went all out on their instruments and lyrics were shouted at the top of their lungs! Throughout the set, Cole kept having to adjust their glasses, as they were slipping down their nose, but on the final song, the glasses were flung from face as the entire band went wild through the heavy sound waves coming from the speakers.
Spooky Eyes took the stage next, starting out fast and energetic. With a straightforward punk sound, Spooky Eyes easily captivated the crowd. Their sound was hard but not too intense -just right. At some points their music reminded me of Vancouver band, The Courtneys.
The band was light hearted yet professional on stage. Their love for music shined through their performance, as they enjoyed performing as much as the audience enjoyed watching them. Without being too repetitive, the lyrics circled themselves and haunted the audience, which made it easy to lose yourself in the sound.
The heavy bass, rhythm, and lead guitars created a wall of sound that worked perfectly with the drums. The lyrics were clear and the songs concise, making Spooky Eyes’ performance extremely memorable.
At last it was time for Hut Hut. I had been waiting for their next performance for a while, and oh boy, did they deliver. No matter how many times you’ve seen them play, they always surprise you with their unique vocal transformations and their crazy guitar licks.
The set started off with beats from a Casio keyboard, and when the drums kicked in, the whole room must’ve felt the urge to dance. With a themed keyboard/guitar line that reprised throughout the set, Hut Hut flowed with purpose through the night.
After not performing from May 2017 until now, band leader Matt Klachefsky says it was great to be back on stage. “It feel’s weird not playing for that long… We need to stop NOT performing.”
Though Hut Hut doesn’t perform as often as Boats used to, Klachefsky says that he is glad that music is still a part of what he is doing now. “I’m very pleased with the way things went [with Boats], and with the way things are going now.”
“I have an album written,” Klachefsky says, “It’s just a matter of recording it. We’ve been up in the practice space chipping away at it.” Hut Hut hopes to release the album, but has yet to set an estimated time.
“I think if I don’t perform music I might just shrink and wither away.” Klachefsky’s urge to make music definitely shared his passion with the audience during the Hut Hut’s performance. “It’s just something that I need to do, I guess. It’s fun.”
All in all, the three bands put on an exciting show that left the audience wanting more, and hopefully they’ll get more!