Vesuvio Solo

M for Montreal, Montreal QC, November 18

Photo: Nadia Davoli

BY Matt BobkinPublished Nov 19, 2017

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Local retro-pop purveyors Vesuvio Solo have been on hiatus recently, as co-frontmen Cam Maclean and Thom Gillies have been working on solo material; they reunited the old band to showcase some tunes from each of their solo projects (plus some Vesuvio tunes in the mix for good measure).
 
Kicking off with Maclean's "Where I Go," it deftly showcased his songwriting strengths and soft rock sensibilities. Tales of love and heartache were told with plenty of guitar licks, and a lyric about literal puppy love served to emphasize the yacht rock schmaltz. Gillies' bass grooves helped round out Maclean's guitar-driven sound.
 
Though Gillies' turn on the lead had a rougher start — his first vocal turn found the bassist putting on his best Michael Jackson impression — he rebounded for grooving closing number "Haunted Love (Tunnel Vision)," which found him better establishing his own voice among his many influences.
 
Though Vesuvio Solo's future looks uncertain, both Maclean and Gillies are committing to the band's throwback ethos in their solo projects, and this semi-reunion showcased the strength of their collaboration.

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