Last night, I made my way to the Royal Theatre to watch Toronto rockers The Beaches perform during the last leg of their Canadian Blame My Ex Tour.
I was excited about any excuse to see live music, and especially to see The Beaches because I had heard whispers of the four-piece putting on an amazing show. Despite that, I made sure to put the rumours to the side upon entering the theatre as I wanted a truly unbiased experience.
As I found my seat, I noticed that the stage was equipped with palm trees, orange shag carpets, an orange flower garland, as well as a pineapple sitting on a keyboard. Using my best detective skills, I deduced that the first band, Beach Weather, would be funky. I was partially right.
The five-piece alt-rock band put on a pretty good performance. However, the “rock” portion of the description is pushing it a bit, with many of the songs coming off as more mellow.
The band members stayed pretty still for their set, which, sadly, didn’t excite me out of my seat. The lead singer, Nick Santino, seemed slightly annoyed by the stagnation of the audience as he proclaimed, “I feel like I’m at an assembly, fuck.” But I’d argue that the audience reaction matched the set’s energy.
I did enjoy the raspy vocals, and the song “Pineapple Sunrise,” which I found myself humming in the bathroom during intermission. I think if Beach Weather added a bit more pizzazz and movement to their set it would elevate them.
The Beaches were up next, and the stage was stripped down to its bare bones, with a small, elevated platform for drummer Eliza Enman-McDaniel. My first reaction to The Beaches was to search the ground for my jaw followed by an attempt to write this review without fangirling too hard. This was a next-level performance and one of the top 10 I’d ever seen live.
Firstly, the chemistry between the members was unparalleled, but not in a showboating, too-cool-for-school way that you often see with musicians. Watching them dance on stage together, move seamlessly together, or speak to each other was so natural that the audience could mistake themselves for hanging out with talented friends instead of being paying concertgoers.
And by talent, I mean talent. And fun: this was the epitome of a rock show, with beers, one guitarist knighting the other with their guitar, and some serious female badassery. Which is so refreshing, especially in a male-dominated industry.
I couldn’t decide what I liked best, the amazing drummer, guitarists Kylie Miller and Leandra Earl, Jordan Miller’s powerhouse vocals, or the movement they brought to the stage. The amalgamation of their sound and their stage presence boiled into an energetic set that had the audience dancing, screaming, and condemning Brett during the song “Blame Brett.”
The songs played from the band’s 2023 sophomore Blame Your Ex album made it quite clear that the music was inspired by a breakup. However, the songs are filled with more than just the usual emotions of sadness and anger that come with the territory, and the audience turning the room into a big party was a testament to that.
The versatility of the band was showcased further when they performed the acoustic breakup song “If a Tree Falls,” which was soft and beautiful, with haunting harmonies.
The Beaches solidified their spot as rock gods during last night’s performance, and it won’t be one that I forget anytime soon.