I’ve seen the Rheostatics four times now, I think. The most recent trip was two years ago and it wasn’t as good as the first two visits, so I’d planned to avoid the Winter (nee Fall) Nationals this year. However, M² informed me that Wednesday night was “Whale Music night”, and they planned to play the entire Whale Music album (not the soundtrack) in order. Since that’s one of the best Canadian albums ever made, and my schedule had freed up a bit, I couldn’t resist.

So to the Horseshoe I went, along with Nellie and Stanzi. We met up with M², H² and their friend (who I think I’ll call “Backhander”) around 9:30. We sat, had a drink, debated the existence of ligers* and watched the opening act: Great Aunt Ida. Half of the band members were Rheostatics filling in. It was a little dreary, but I kind of liked it. You can check out her stuff at the New Music Canada site.

After nearly an hour of setup and tuning (during which Martin Tielli wore a giant wig that made him look like Brian May) Dave Bidini popped on stage to introduce Paul Quarrington, who wrote Whale Music (the book, not the album). I liked this a lot; it’s not often you get a Governor General award winner out to set some context for the concert you’re about to watch. Quarrington read a few pages from the book and then called the Rheos to the stage. All seven of them.

Seven, you say? Yes, seven. The usual suspects — Bidini, Tielli, Tim Vesely and Michael Phillip-Wojewoda — were there, but they also brought Dave Clark back to play the drums alongside MPW, recruited Ford Pier to play keyboards and, of course, had Lewis Melville on hand to accompany them as he had on the album. Having seven people made the stage pretty crowded. It also made them very fucking loud.

As promised, they played the entire album start to finish. At least, I trust they did; I split after the tenth song (“Shaved Head”) and they still had seven to go. I just don’t like the last third of the disc that much, and I knew that Nellie was sitting at the back (alone, as it turns out; Stanzi managed to stay almost as long as we did, leaving after about four or five songs) so I decided to head out. I easily felt I got my money’s worth. Highlights:

• “Queer”, as always. When Dave screams “Gonna find me another home!” like that, it gives me the willies, just like it did the first time I heard it.
• Sacrificing my right ear to “RDA (Rock Death America)”
• Dave and Martin staging an extended slide whistle vs. recorder duel during “Legal Age Life.” Seriously.
• “Shaved Head”, because it’s brilliant. When they told us it was recorded for the first time in a dark room, that just made me picture it, and I got completely lost in the song. It was playing in my head on the way out the door, in the cab, and in bed last night. I got up and listened to it twice this morning, and again this afternoon. It’s playing in my head right now.

I’m glad M² found out about Whale Music night and got us tickets. I’d hate to have missed that.

* I told you they exist. Suck it, bitches.