The Golden Dogs w/ The Yoko Casionos and Paso Mino @ Lee's Palace

Last night was the best $8.50 I'd ever spent in my life. Well, rather, $8.50 x 2 plus convenience charges, beer, and the cost of the Golden Dogs and the Yoko Casionos new albums this morning on iTunes. But it was still the most bang for my buck I'd ever gotten at a concert: three tight, hard-rawkin, power-pop-alt-rock bands in one night. It was a good show, and even better, I did not black out from poor air circulation, as is my habit at Lee's Palace.

I can't find much on Paso Mino online; their website is under construction and I get the impression their current claim to fame is being Jason Collett's backup band. I'm not surprised; they were fantastic players, but still have to work out their sound. They haven't made up their mind between blues-rock, Canadian indie rock, and radio-friendly rock. They've got a lot going for them, though, including a lead guitarist with a distinct, mature, Jeff Martin-like voice. I wish they had rawked out a bit more, but the sensitive, lovelorn crooning probably makes them more popular with the ladies.

Overheard in the ladies' room near the end of Paso Mino's set (I couldn't wait): "Remember when Juan and Stef got kicked out because the staff throught they were screwing in the stall, but they were just exchanging clothes?"

The Yoko Casionos had already scored two points with me even though I'd never heard them before: a) their awesome name and b) they feature a rabbit in most of their photos and artwork. (Sadly they didn't have any T-shirts for sale at the merch table; I would have bought one in a flash.)

Live, I was pleasantly surprised. Very slick, very polished power pop-rock -- although almost too polished, if that's possible. Every song was bright and rich and performed impeccably. I can see them becoming very popular amongst faux-punk teenagers who like Green Day and Billy Talent -- and I actually don't mean that as a backhanded compliment. If their cards are played right, they could attract a huge and lucrative fan base and would be totally deserving of it. (And obviously, others think so, because according to iTunes These Are the New Old Times is distributed by Universal Music.)

Overheard in the ladies' room after their set:

"Aren't --- and Nathan cool?"
"Yeah! I wish they had played at my bat mitzvah!"

I don't think they were referring to any of the band members, but still, that made me feel old.

And finally, the Golden Dogs. I had bought Everything in 3 Parts last year on the sheer catchiness of "Yeah!", liked the rest of the album a lot, but had held off buying Big Eye, Little Eye. I think this was the first time I'd seen a band in which all the members looked like they were about to spontaneously combust. (Except the bassist. He showed admirable restraint. A quick buzz on the web reveals that he's relatively new to the band, so that explains it.)

Highlights: fake vines adorning everything, Christmas lights, the drummer drinking straight from a pitcher of water, the keyboardist swapping out handmade song namecards on a music stand, and a guitarist who looked like he could've been the kid brother of Bubbles from Trailer Park Boys. And how the frontman could rawk out on guitar and lead vocals and chew gum at the same time is beyond me. He's clearly an evolved species.

But really, the Golden Dogs shouldn't hold back so much, y'know? They shouldn't be so uptight and self-conscious. They need to work on being more comfortable on stage. Let loose once in a while. Give it their all.

Paso Mino website (under construction)
Paso Mino on MySpace
Yoko Casionos website
Yoko Casionos on MySpace
Golden Dogs website
Golden Dogs on MySpace
Video for "Never Meant Any Harm" on YouTube (Which makes them seem like a sedate New Wave band, but keep watching. You'll also see the song name placards in the background.)