It is always a pleasure to have Southern Alberta roots/ country band Tin and the Toad back in Lethbridge.
I was lucky they were still playing by the time I arrived at the Slice, Saturday, Dec. 8. Justin “Tin” Smith, Cody “Toad” Shearer, steel guitarist/ lead guitarist Steve Loree and drummer Ryan Shearer were joined by Tyler Bird on bass, filling in for Pete Loughlin. They played their usual toe tapping, heartfelt set of alt country and roots music. As usual, their multi-part vocal harmonies were a highlight.
Headliners, the Mayhemingways’ Benj Rowland joined them on stage to play accordion for a song. They ended their set with their exceptional country version of SNFU’s “Head Smashed in Buffalo Jump.”
I always look forward to seeing Peterborough duo the Mayhemingways back in Lethbridge. They always get a good crowd. They even have people who travel from out of town to come and see them, and with good reason— they always put on an amazing show. Benj Rowland was multi-tasking on guitar, banjo and accordion also stomped out a rhythm on bass pedals and sang dark lyrics, but made them sound downright ecstatic. Drummer Josh Fewings gleefully pounded the skins and sang harmonies.
They mostly played originals music from their last two CDs, “Hunter St. Blues” and “Skip Land” but Rowland rocked the accordion on an excellent cover of Dire Straits’ “Walk of Life.”
His appealing tenor voice reminded me of Mike McDonald of Jr. Gone Wild.
A couple of highlights I recognized were “Trouble in the Basement,” “Dirty Small Town Crush” and “Hunter Street Blues,” which featured Tin And the Toad returning to the stage to jam.
They also played a solid country of the Bruce Springsteen’s “Atlantic City.”
