The war is over, and we are beginning

Another excellent show to report . . . My cousin and I saw Stars on Friday night at the Vic in Chicago, and I was blown away. I have to admit that I did not really know what to expect from a Stars show. Some of their music is so mellow that I was not sure how it would be live, but all of my fears disappeared immediately.

The lead singer, Torquil Campbell, has great stage presence, and he chatted it up throughout the show. And I guess I never realized what an amazing voice he has--I have always liked his voice on cd, but his live voice is even more powerful.

And then there's co-singer/guitarist Amy Millan, she of the beautiful pipes and Broken Social Scene collaborations. And on Friday, Amy was in full rock star mode . . . like Janis Joplin rock star mode. She was so stumbelina drunk that she almost fell over a few times. She was kicking amps around, throwing mic stands down, etc. However, she performed perfectly (except once when the band started playing "Heart" but she started singing "Calendar Girl"). She was most entertaining to watch.

They played all of my favorite songs, beginning with "Take Me to the Riot," which got the full-house crowd going right from the start. "Ageless Beauty" and "Reunion" were both very good, and they also played two of my absolute favorites, "Your Ex-Lover is Dead" and "Elevator Love Letter." But the best and most charged performance was "In Our Bedroom After the War," which Torq imbued with such passion and power that I had goosebumps.

No more concerts on the horizon, but this last week should tide me over for a while.