Bigwig / Subb / Jettison / District 7

This was a great line-up for all Ottawa kids and a sweet fix before the January drought of shows, District 7, Jettison, SUBB and Bigwig. A sold out show, they filled up the house fast, it’s amazing to see how common of a household name Bigwig’s become up here after incessant hard tours shits finally paying off for them, Canada just eats them up…

The band that brought me out to this show without doubt is District 7, a local skate punk band formed a couple years back. I saw them for the first time last year at this same venue with Bigwig and melodically they’ve come a long way fast. That show and other tours helped gain them some fast attention and landed them a spot on the punkrocks.net stage on this years Warped Tour. Their first full-length is called ‘Another Last Chance’ released on Lameass Recordz (you can buy it on interpunk.com) it’s, fast and contagious with a few political but matter-of-fact undertones. They started their set with a catchy track ‘Human Virus’ also playing ‘Another Last Chance’ finishing things up amazingly with one of their best song ’East River Revolution’. On stage, they might only be a three-piece for now but they’re able to hold it together, everything musically about their sound was right, they were one of the few bands that night that got the kids screaming for an encore, any other review you find on them, will contest, live, they really throw it all down, watch out for them.

Jettison played next, they’re a band from New Jersey out on their first Canadian tour. They carried the poppy band title but their presence was felt on stage keeping the crowd going with lots of catchy chords and lyrics about heartbreaks. They just released an EP called ‘Wish You Were Her’ on Small Records with a sound I heard a few compare to Goldfinger meets Jawbreaker. The best stand out tracks I heard performed off their set-list was ‘Goodbye, So Long’ and their last song ‘Chasing Amy’ that had a really melodic hum. Jettison also had a different bass player, he’s actually formerly from The Overdrives (Josh from Bigwig’s old band too). I also like the sound of their drums, the element of speed behind things kept Jettison’s set interesting. You can tell Bigwig’s been an obvious influence, in their music so don’t get me wrong I don’t want to give the impression they sound like a cheesy offspring of New Found Glory, they really have a promising sound .

The debonair Montreal natives Subb were the last band up before Bigwig. Out promoting their latest record released on Stomp Records (Union Label Group) called ‘Daylight Saving’ their catchy punk under toned ska sound was a great choice to add on to this tour. They first ripped things up with ‘Straight Line, Twisted Mind’ from their first album ‘Like Kids in a Field’ that’s now out of print, then they played the well received ‘Daylight Saving’ getting lots of kids to sing along. Subb’s fun to watch up there keeping busy jumping and dancing around, they can cure any hot head or cold heart and Jeff’s (singer) voice sounds slightly different and more mature live giving you a different appreciation for their music. They closed off their set with ‘I’m Not Going Anywhere’ and ‘Brad Nowell’ stirring up and setting the stage with honor for Bigwig.

All, the little wig’s in attendance finally got what they wanted. Bigwig came out and ripped into the crowd opening with perfection ‘Mr. Asshole’ followed by their ‘Cheers’ cover that was sung out like an anthem. Bigwig’s new drummer, Keith who’s also a long time friend of the band fits in seamlessly, knowing what he’s up against he’s fast and kept up valiantly. If you’ve never been in this venue, it’s hard to understand but the level of heat rises to the point where you feel like you’re about to spontaneously combust and by the end you could tell the heat was getting to everyone. To help out and give Tom a break, Josh’s strong vocals took over quite a few times until finally he too was seeing black dots so Steve from Jettison came on stage to play guitar on a few songs leaving Tom and Josh the energy they needed to sound as doughty as the crowd had anticipated. Some other skillful tracks they performed ‘Moosh’ for all the ladies ‘Girl in the Green Jacket’, ‘Sink or Swim’, ‘Hope’ and ‘Smile’, no time for an encore they rapped things up with ‘Sellout’. Another kick-ass energetic appearance, they walk worthy of their name, established as definite bigwigs up here, Canadians just can’t get enough of them EH!