On Feb. 19, the Clova Cinema presented two of Cloverdale’s up and coming artists, Last Call Home and Ransom For the Captives. Both these bands and another band they invited, Sally’s Hot, from Port Moody put on an amazing show.
I have to give a lot of praise to these kids. With the professionalism displayed and the ability and talent shown, it showed me what today’s teens can accomplish.
I am a resident of Cloverdale, a music lover and have the joy to be able to review shows as a passion. I thought the whole event was very well done. All three of these bands have a future in performing. There were the occasional technical difficulties but the soundman and the musicians recovered quite quickly and the show never missed a beat.
The concert opened with Last Call Home. This quartet from Cloverdale, who are students at Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary, did a tight, well-produced act. Guitar/ vocalist, Sam Hobeyn is a natural frontman, also shared with Matt Friesen on guitar and vocals who split the singing between them. Carson Hoy on drums and Jordon O’Donovan on bass both played fantastic.
The members of Sally’s Hot were not only talented in performing, they also played some awesome original work. Frontman Zak Johnson, on guitar and vocals, could be a comedian on the side. TJ Gibson on the drums had a powerful set, Chris Macbeth on rhythm guitar and backing vocals shared the stage, and Robbie Blythe on bass was amazing. The technical abilities I saw just amazed me.
Ransom for the Captives is also comprised of Lord Tweedmuir students. This six-member band was talented and played with different styles of music from acoustic to edgy rock. I liked their ability to change and not focus on one style alone.
Lead singer Rochelle Paterson shared the spotlight with bass player/vocalist Paul Engels. Keyboardist Lauren Dyck had great presence, a smile that would not quit. She played awesome and was truly enjoying it. Drummer Zach Birmingham doing his drum solo had me flashback to the ’70s when I saw such artists like Jerry Mercer of April Wine or early Neil Peart from Rush in 1977. Then there are the two stellar guitarists Robert Crews and Nik Dragutinovich.
Well done guys. Your original work was great and the cover tunes were equally well done.
I have to say congratulations to The Clova Cinema. It is a great venue to showcase these young artists and the community needs to help promote our young talent whenever it can.
I’m looking forward to seeing more acts at The Clova.
Paul Fitzgerald
Contributing writer for RockStar Weekly Magazine
www.rockstarweekly.com
