WIARDA and Everylynx rock Lana Lous

By Hollie McGowan

At around 9pm as the crowd began slowly entering Vancouver’s LanaLou’s Rock and Roll Eatery, three members of East Van’s melodic-folk indie-rock pop band, WIARDA, started the night out with a mellow acoustic set. Easing into the evening, frontwoman, Natalie Wiarda, back-up vocalist, Kaila Viger, and multi-instrumentalist, Max Boyle coaxed attendees along for what was about to become a night of melodic exploration. After three opening songs, other bandmates, Harry Hills and Phil Good joined for a few more including “Deity”, “Colder”, and “Fire”.  

Following WIARDA’s opening set, local Vancouver-based electronic music artist, Everlynx, took to the stage. Keeping in line with the melodic atmosphere of the evening, Everlynx raised the energy levels a touch with his electronic-folk live looping set. Equipped with an array of instruments including a loop pedal and guitar, Everlynx, aka Sky Brown, enlivened the crowd, bringing them to their feet and onto the dancefloor. 

An impressive one-man band, Everlynx’s dreamy, blissful electronic pulse took the room on a journey. Euphoric yet danceable, he seamlessly layered each rhythm and melody while allowing his vocals to dance lightly on the surface of each track. Sojourning between faster and slower tempos, Everlynx ran the gamut of his repertoire while attendees began to stretch their legs on the dancefloor.  

For their final set, WIARDA jumped back in the game, bursting with energy. Playing their tune, “Wouldn’t Say”, lead guitarist, Phil Good, shredded during his solo which proved to be a real crowd pleaser. Moving into “Bad Idea”, frontwoman, Natalie Wiarda, poured her soul into the mike and harmonica while back-up vocalist, Kaila Viger, took the harmonies to new invigorating heights. Multi-instrumenatlist, Harry Hills, kept the band in line with his driving basslines, a prodigy of the instrument that even Flea would bow down to.

Next up during their performance of “The Lake”, drummer, Max Boyle, regretfully announced the impending death, yet also long life, of his drum kit. “It was birthed in ‘94,” he explained while the bandmates made a quick temporary fix, allowing the show to go on.

After moving towards a more reggae-ish direction for a period, WIARDA played one of their most well-known tracks among their fans, “The Neil Armstrong Song”. Boyle led attendees of the show through a portion of the lyrics before breaking out into his own drum solo which hyped the crowd.

Influenced by her own Christian upbringing, Wiarda proceeded to serenade the crowd with a tune about saving oneself for Jesus called “Rebound Jesus”, accompanied by an organ setting on her electric piano of course. It was high time we all took a trip to church, as much as a beer-guzzling, weed-smoking, funk-loving crowd could. 

Closing their show, WIARDA, brought the room on a Alanis Morisette inspired medley, an aspect to the band’s performance that fans have come to know and love. On guitar, Good brought his own psychedelic flavor. When the final song came to a close, the room cried for more. “One more?” asked Wiarda. “Two more! Eight more! Nine more!” They shouted back. The band left the room on a heavenly high showcases their gripping stage presence and talent.