It was an average day in Cleveland except for one thing--The Canadian band SLOAN was taking the stage at the Grog Shop at Coventry. SLOAN is a four person group consisting of Jay Ferguson (guitar), Chris Murphy (bass), Patrick Pentland (guitar), and Andrew Scott (drums) where all four carry vocal duties. These guys have been lumped into a "retro-Britpop" sound category with their three releases, but their live show can be lumped into one category: rocking. SLOAN interchanged old songs with new to give a well-rounded view of their discography.

The crowd at the Grog Shop was definitely there to see SLOAN--a band fairly new to America but already big in Canada. Formed in 1991 and still here today, SLOAN sure can show that they have what it takes to rock. They took to the stage, opening with the melodic verse and thunderous chorus of "Pen Pals" from their sophomore album, Twice Removed (DGC). "Pen Pals" got the crowd to start bobbing their heads and get ready to rock. SLOAN continued with a new song, "Girl In Case," where Patrick Pentland's use of the wah-wah pedal gave the night some retro JIMI HENDRIX-type riffs. Chris started the next song, "Nothing Left to Make Me Want to Stay" from their latest album, One Chord To Another (Murderecords), a capella and then dropped into high gear to get the crowd moving.

SLOAN then shifted to a new song, "All By Myself," featuring Chris, Patrick and Jay all singing vocals of a great radio-type song which is of the make-you-so-happy-you-gotta-smile genre. Then the boys went into "Lines You Amend" which had most of the crowd singing and jamming along. Patrick then sang a new song, "Iggy & Angus," which had harmonizing music carried by Andrew's fantastic drums, as well as an excellent guitar solo.

Here's where the concert changed gear for a moment. Chris went to the drums and Andrew came up front, taking over bass duties in order to better serve as a singer to what the sound engineer described as "Andy's Thang," consisting of the song "500 Up" from their first major release, Smeared (DGC), plus a couple others. This medley was a departure from SLOAN's previously fast paced three and a half minute songs into longer, more melancholy music.

SLOAN switched back to their original stance to play "Anyone Who's Anyone," giving the dancers in the crowd a jump start. The guys then went into their song "Chester...," which showed a little bit of the old punk influence of the band, and then into "The Good In Everyone," the largest crowd pleaser of the evening. The song ended in a fast paced jam session which led into a short-lived rendition of DEEP PURPLE's "Smoke on the Water."

They then went into new songs "Keep On and Jam" and "Money City Maniacs," the latter being the audience participation event of the evening. Hands clapping and bodies swaying, everyone was happy SLOAN was playing.

And then they said goodnight.

But we Americans are a litttle more demanding than that. After cramming nearly 14 songs into an hour, the chant for SLOAN to return to the stage began and the Halifax, Canadians came back giving the audience two songs from One Chord To Another, "Everything You've Done Wrong" and "G turns to D." The dancing kicked back up and the American greediness for more music was satisfied.

Stepping back from the event, it is very easy to say that SLOAN is a band that will take America head on if they can only get enough exposure. Their CDs are great, but to experience SLOAN, the best way is to see them live. The CDs have a lot of great music, but their shows totally blow you away.

- Daina Butkus
MTV College Stringer
feedlocal@mtvmail.com
(November 19, 1997)

photo: LimeZinger