March 17, 1997
Club Soda. Montreal, Canada.
Check out the setlist and pictures.
Montreal, Canada - Until yesterday, I had never seen what the Club Soda looked like. Its quite small, has a capacity of about 500 people, and the stage is very narrow... just the perfect spot for a Cranes gig. I was standing in the first row, just under Alison's mic. When she walked on the stage for the opening "Tangled Up", I was totally paralysed, couldn't think of anything... I just listened to her dreamy voice, the closest thing on Earth to the sound of angels. The performance was spotless, with but a few minor technical bugs (Alison's guitar wasn't plugged in on "Jewel"). The sound was perfect, even with my ears so close to the monitors. I just LOVED the new way Alison sings "Lillies", with a kinda upbeat feel, very cute. The set list is about the same as the US dates, but we got the best version of "Starblood" yet: It was so powerful, yet so gentle, yet so...
Now I know this has been told many times, but the Cranes are very down-to-Earth and friendly. They took the time to speak with us poor mortals and signed a couple of autographs, not like many other bands who feel so superior to everybody else and doesn't give a damn about their fans. I even got to hang out with them backstage... I only wish I could've found a Mars Attacks Talking Martian for Ali, but we don't have those here in Canada... :-(
Just remember: Go see the Cranes! Let yourself be impregnated with sadness, joy, hope and despair all at the same time, and be carried away by an Angel's whisper...