I must admit there haven’t been many releases this year I’ve been as excited about as ‘Now or Nowhere’ from Canada’s The Damn Truth. And here we are around the globe huddled collectively together to watch them play it through live in a Church with no audience to whet the appetite of fans who just might get to see them on the stage soon.
As an album ‘Now or Nowhere’ is something all lovers of real Rock and Roll need to hear and in these times with much of the world still locked-down a ‘live stream’ seems to be the only real method out there of conveying something close to the live experience, so this promo treat for the fans was something I had to catch, though as global time zones are I only managed to get the first hour live before starting work Downunder and caught the rest on replay.
For a band to come on and play their new album from front to back isn’t anything new of course but its the sheer power of these collected songs with no weak links in sight that really blows you away here so musically we are certainly ticking all the boxes but as a facsimile or a live show I’m not sure about how the first part of the program was put together. As a watcher of many live streams over the duration of covid I’m not sure that cutting to pre-recorded chats between songs is the way to ‘experience’ that live show we’ve all been missing.
Part of the live experience for me at least is the anticipation, the set up, the glances from the stage and the things that go wrong, those moments of waiting and soaking in the feel of the room. OK so I know you can’t get that from a stream (Unless you’ve gone to great lengths at home to create the smell off your favourite venue) but for me the way the songs were interspersed with anecdotes didn’t work as well as seeing the set live without cuts. It just seemed to take something away, and even though the insights were candid and interesting at times it felt like more of an extended promo than a ‘live event’.
That said you can’t fault the sound which was almost suspiciously flawless! In this setting The Damn Truth seemed very slick and well prepared, and that of course isn’t a bad thing, but an the other hand it seems like the very antithesis of the band and their sound! There were no ragged edges, no awkward pauses just a wonderfully clean digital presentation for a band that sounds gloriously analogue! Half of me wanted to see them in a dimly lit club!
Tonight though you can’t deny the band is on fire, dressed in vintage threads they’re ready for action and more than deliver. The pre-recorded chats between tracks from the new album allow them to regroup, change guitars and just launch into things and there’s less stage chat than you might imagine probably due to those inserts which again doesn’t tell you a whole lot about their live show, but you can’t deny that when they play the sound is remarkable and crystal clear.
But like I say with every song explained and annotated between each other song it’s not quite got the smell and feel of a live show, but who cares when you can kick off with the one-two of ‘This is Who We Are Now’ and ‘Tomorrow’ before the Grace Slick vocal on ‘Only Love’ changes things up nicely. The longer I’ve lived with this album though it’s the mellower moments that have shone more brightly and ‘Lonely’ sees two more backing vocalists on stage to add more depth before the acoustic ‘Everything Fades’ hits just just as powerfully as it did the first time I heard it.
The one thing you cant dispute though is how wonderful and heartfelt this music is! It’s glorious to hear a band in 2021 sound like this and when they rock out on ‘The Fire’ you’re almost out of the chair with them! There’s a story from the stage for ‘Looks Innocent’ that connects better than the between songs chats and actually enhances the song which is still one of my highlights here and on the record.
It was interesting to hear that ‘Full On You’ was written with The Kinks in mind and it slightly changed my outlook on the song being a huge fan, but I still only heard an echo and that of course is what you want from a band – that amassed strata of inspiration rather than duplication! Sadly the final song comes too soon with ‘Shot ‘Em’ announcing the end of what must surely be a contender for album of the year.
The album promo may be over but the set adds seven more songs – five from the bands previous record and a couple from the debut. This is where the live gig kicks in and like the first half there’s no let up in quality. The powerful ‘Pirates and Politicians’ and its environmental and modern world musings, the rockier ‘Devilish Folk’ (lets hope we do see them live soon) the huge groove of ‘Too Late’ – man this is ticking lots of boxes for those late to the party!
When you add the cascading jazzy dynamic ‘Kinda Awkward’ and its “You Don’t Know Me” refrain and the lilting and Folk Rock tinged ‘Devilish Folk’ with it’s fiery climax, this is a band you need to know. Closing with ‘Heart is Cold’ there’s a real Zeppelin vibe going on. This is music to move you… These guys could well be the next big thing.
all photos by Ralph Alphonso
