Destroyer (Cafe du Nord, 8 May 2006)

Last time I saw Dan Bejar, his band, Destroyer, opened up for The New Pornographers at Bimbo's. I saw only a bit of his set, but I really liked what I saw. Bejar is a scrappy guy, full of scruffy features and really rough around the edges. He was also really drunk when I saw him.

Destroyer's new album, Destroyer's Rubies, is probably their best release yet. Bejar's Dylan-esque vocals and his band's pop oriented instrumentation is a perfect match.

At their sold out show at Cafe du Nord, Bejar once again looked as if he drank a bit too much. However, as I soon discovered, he was nearly sober the entire time. The whole crowd was really into their set and they played most of the new album's songs.

One of my favourite tracks, "European Oils" didn't veer too much away from the album version. Bejar was right on with the lyrics, and his band was right in step with him. Another song, "Rubies" didn't seem like it was nearly 10 minutes long, but instead went by so fast that I thought there was more to it.

Like his New Pornographer counterparts, Bejar stuck with the program and interacted little with the audience. But we didn't mind. We just wanted to hear the good stuff. They came back for two encores, because of the crowd's insistence.

I left the place fully satisfied (and tired). Destroyer entertained and they played the songs well. Expect them to play a much larger venue a second time around.

Beer Rating: