Indie rock fans rejoiced in 2016 when Canadian cult favorites Wolf Parade announced their return to the stage and the studio after going on hiatus in 2011. While each of the band members have racked up considerable accolades on their own, together as Wolf Parade they have a massive sound that has won them loyal fans. Their hiatus only seemed to build a larger following, and on Sunday, January 14 they cruised through Portland, Oregon for a nearly sold out show at the Crystal Ballroom.
The band was in fine form as they took the stage to rapturous applause as if they had never been on hiatus at all. They were determined to give their fans a proper live dose of their fourth full-length studio album Cry Cry Cry, which came out late last year. Keyboardist Spencer Krug and guitarist Dan Boeckner would take turns leading vocals, with Krug bringing his New Wave-meets-brooding pop vocals to songs like “Lazurus Online”, “Valley Boy”, and the frenetic “Baby Blue”, with Boeckner tapping into a more straightforward, catchy rock aesthetic on songs like “You’re Dreaming”, “Incantation”, and the politically-charged, anthemic rocker “Weaponized. Krug would deliver some of his strongest vocal performances during older favorites like “Grounds For Divorce” and “Dear Sons and Daughters of Hungry Ghosts”, showing off his rollercoaster vocal range while occasionally topping off his cup of red wine. The perpetually sleeveless Boeckner would revel in the guitar heavy moments of older songs like “Fine Young Cannibals” and the soaring set-closer “This Heart’s On Fire”. Bassist Dane DeCaro smiled through it all while delivering forceful, thumping bass lines and playing off the instrumental strengths of Boeckner and Krug.
If there was one takeaway from Wolf Parade’s show in Portland on Sunday, it was the lingering as to how this band never rose to the arena rock level. Their sound is a mélange of pop, punk, industrial, New Wave, and rock and roll. Onstage at the Crystal, they showed off both the strength of their musical catalogue and their ability to drive their fans absolutely apeshit in the best kind of way. Every song hit hard and was just as inviting to sing along with as it was to dance along to. Unlike their peers and fellow Canadians Arcade Fire, Wolf Parade have never sold out their indie rock values in favor of making bland pop music. The live power of their Cry Cry Cry songs fit in well with their older material, hopefully signaling to the fans that Wolf Parade won’t soon be taking another hiatus.
