Maybe it’s a matter of opinion, but it was not an ideal day to go out on the town looking for local live music; humid, raining, and slight thundering. That could explain the small turn out at Lee’s Palace on the last day of May, 2018 for a set of four bands, opening with Toronto’s own Wrong Jeremy.
As 8:30pm rolled around, it appeared that only some friends and a few strangers were supporting the show. Wrong Jeremy are a four-piece band consisting of the lead singer, lead (double necked) guitar, bass, and drums…basic looking, but you can’t assume from looks! Angie, the lead singer, introduced the band, then broke out into their first song “Born To Let It Ride.” The first thing I noticed was their soft, almost classic-rock sound. Angie’s voice is on the border between alto and soprano; deep-ish, but not deep. She slid through scales very nicely. The second song “Pirate One” had a higher tempo and a superbly catchy and loud chorus. Next they covered Jefferson Airplane’s “White Rabbit.” Their intuition for classic rock inspiration was spot on! Angie then switched from guitar to keyboard for their ballad “Untitled Love Song.” Sarah, the band’s drummer, was providing backing vocals noticeably on this song.
The stand-out song of the night was “Wild.” Angie encouraged the crowd to get up and move around and said this song was going to be more “aggressive.” Lead guitarist Preston provided a mysterious and enticing riff for the melody, but the drumming was the most aggressive point of the song, which was composed of more music than vocals. Overall, it made for a really an awesome listening experience that was still reminiscent of classic rock, but with a 90’s aggression.
Next they played “Midas,” which Angie explained is about the ignorance of rich people and inspired by a Chilean, Latin-American sound. It definitely sounded Latin American, especially the beat. They ended the night with the song “Strange Love.” Angie was on the keyboards, this time with a 70’s synth sound. The lead guitar was also channelling 70’s funk, until it came time for Preston’s Prince-like guitar solo.
By the end, I realized that each song had it own unique vibe and inspiration; you never knew which direction you’d go next, which kept the attention of the crowd. Throughout their eight-song set, each member kept an eye on one another; they had great chemistry. Wrong Jeremy doesn’t have a full album yet, but they will have more Toronto stops throughout the summer so go out and support local live music, even on a rainy, humid day.
Written and Photographed by Vicki Mahony
*edited by Kate Erickson
Thanks so much for coming out Vicki and for taking the time to put this together. Big shout out to Bucketlist Reviews – you guys rock!