THE (INTERNATIONAL) NOISE CONSPIRACY @ Cabaret Juste Pour Rire

By Idle Matt - Idle Minds - 06/02/2006

In one of the more shocking concert line-ups of recent years, everyone’s favourite fervently anti-capitalist punk/garage band, The (International) Noise Conspiracy, actually headlined a show!

Last we saw the T(i)NC, they were opening for The Bravery at the Spectrum, something mentioned by lead singer Dennis Lyxzén when he said that they were happy to finally be properly playing Montreal. I reviewed that show too, and they fared pretty well against the darkly danceable juggernaut from NYC (my tongue placed firmly in cheek), but I was curious to see how they fared headlining a show for the same album.

The short review: Not bad, but I’d think twice about seeing them again so soon. That’s what I get for seeing them twice in one year.

But I’m getting ahead of myself... let’s talk about the opening acts.

Montreal’s Dirty Tricks opened the show with a fairly unremarkable set. They were well-received by the crowd, so it might be just personal taste. They just didn’t do it for me live. On the other hand, I’ve since heard a few decent songs on their site, so I might have to give them a second chance one day. They are on the Blue Skies Turn Black record label, which makes me think that I may see them on a few bills.

Did I mention what a joy it was for this recently ex-smoker (almost ten months without a cancer stick) to watch a show without any trace of smoke? It was interesting to watch half the crowd empty out between bands to have a smoke outside though.

New York’s The Fever had an interesting mix of styles, trying their best to make every song sound different from the last. I thought their mix of blues, disco, psychedelica and shaken with a bit of Tom Waits, was quite interesting and makes me want to check ‘em out again.

Another mass exodus outside (myself included... had to keep the smoker friend company) and it was time for T(i)NC.

The same backdrop... the same Public Enemy intro music... the same matching outfits...

And a new keyboard player whose name I can’t find anywhere, but he did a fine job. We all still miss Sara though!

Starting off their set with "Armed Love", the title track from their latest album, the band played a good mix of new songs -- which really do sound better live than they do on the album -- and songs off their first two albums.

The set list was fairly similar to their opening set eight months earlier, but headlining a show means a longer set and more songs... and so they added 5-6 songs not played last year. Personal favourite "Ready Steady Go" was played this time around, but cut into an instrumental at which point Dennis went backstage and came back out wearing a black ski mask. He jumps into the crowd, runs upstairs and around the balcony and then back onstage. And then... wouldn’t you know it! They broke into the song "Black Mask". Why didn’t I see that one coming?

Surprisingly, the leftist propaganda was kept to a minimum, but the usual rock ‘n’ roll grandstanding was there, including Dennis’ fairly creepy reach into his pants.

Band leaves the stage after "Black Mask", everyone cheers, and the band comes back out. Maybe I go to too many shows, but wouldn’t it be refreshing to not have that break between the main set and the encore? We all know they’re going to come back out...

...and play "Capitism Stole My Virginity". Dennis once again does his Iggy Pop impression, walking on the crowd and having people support his feet up as he sung. Not that I’m complaining, because it is a pretty slick move and fun to watch... but it’s the exact same stunt, done during the same song as the last time.

My biggest complaint from the last show was that they didn’t play "The Way I Feel About You" from the new album. This time, they didn’t disappoint, putting in a very respectable version of the song to end the show... or so I thought.

The guys I’m with leave the venue, and I’m trailing behind when I hear the band start up again. I could be wrong but I think Dennis said something to the effect that it was the first time they had done a second encore on this tour. I didn’t think the crowd response was that good to warrant a second encore, but who am I to complain? "I Wanna Know About You" finished out the night’s festivities.

Don’t get me wrong, The (International) Noise Conspiracy are still one of the most entertaining bands to watch live. It’s just that after seeing any band a few times, it can become a little derivative and gimmicky. If you’ve never seen T(i)NC live, I can’t recommend them more highly. I’ll be likely sitting the next one out though.

[Tune in to The Idle Minds Sundays from 4pm to 6pm.]