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Album Art for Plant and Animal's Parc Avenue

I’m glad I managed to snag last minute tickets to see Plants and Animals & Born Ruffians—both Canadian indie bands—at Mercury Lounge last night. I hadn’t heard Plants and Animals before but was immediately impressed by their range and the way they artfully blended a vast array of influences—a bit of the Kooks, The Beatles, Neil Young, Devandra Banhart, Arcade Fire, Yeasayers. They could even go from orchestral, to a dance-driven Afro-beat, to a haunting guitar instrumental.

The Born Ruffians have a very unique sound; it’s frenetic, folksy, and edgy but at the center of their melodies is a special “brand of lovelorn poetry sung by frontman Luke Lalonde sung with equal parts distress and persuasion”—perfectly captured by the iTunes review.

Here’s a sampling of the music:

Plants and Animals - Good Friend
Plants and Animals - Guru
Born Ruffians - I Need A Life
Born Ruffians - Hummingbird

I’ve been obsessed with Brooke Waggoner since she released her first EP last year and jumped at the chance to see her given that I missed her the last time. It was my first time at Joe’s Pub and just like Brooke put it, I was expecting something very “pub-sey”. Quite the contrary—reminiscent of a speakeasy, it has a dark candlelit ambiance, velvet walls and couches to lounge on. Brooke was everything I expected her to be and more: beautiful voice, brilliant on the piano, quirky, and cute with a childlike playfulness that resonates in her music—I think I have a crush!

You can download Brooke’s first EP, Fresh Pair of Eyes, free from her website.

The Pines who opened were really refreshing as well… deep, haunting, and Dylan-esque! What’s more, the club played Devendra Banhart in between sets—totally geeked out!