Even at the relatively early time slot of six p.m., legendary Winnipeg folksy alt-rockers Crash Test Dummies were a fair few minutes late hitting the stage on Sunday — but they had good reason. They barely made it to Victoria, arriving from Dallas, Texas with only two hours to spare before their set time, and somehow during this travel, Ellen Reid's tambourine was lost. Consummate professionals, the Dummies worked through their soundcheck fairly quickly, and kept up a good pace throughout their set as they performed all of the hits from their global hit 1993 album God Shuffled His Feet, and beyond.
They were one of the biggest bands of the '90s, selling millions of albums and leaving a massive impact on pop culture worldwide, but the millennium wasn't kind to the Crash Test Dummies. After touching the sun, their mainstream label put such a leash on their creativity that they split ways. Unfortunately, as they were launching their own independent label, lead singer Brad Roberts was injured in a life-altering car accident. The band members released a series of solo albums, as well four more group albums, but nothing approached the commercial success of their '90s material. They've gone through changes but they're still here, and the music they made so long ago still resonates strongly.
Having survived the flight and the soundcheck, the band hit the stage running. As lead singer and guitarist Brad Roberts strained his chin down to his neck in order bring out the resonance of his signature baritone, his vocals were a little down in the mix during their opening rendition of "Flying Feeling" from their 2003 album Puss 'n' Boots (which was originally intended as a Roberts solo album), but their sound balanced out by next track, "How Does a Duck Know?"
A few songs in, vocalist Ellen Reid stated that it was drummer Mitch Dorge's birthday, and got the audience to sing "Happy Birthday" to him. Unlike Oliver Tree's sing-along to his grandmother on her 93rd birthday at Rifflandia the day before, there's a good chance that this Sunday was actually Mitch's 64th birthday. After that, Reid asked us, "Are you ready to rock moderately?"
"Moderate rock" is the perfect description for the Crash Test Dummies' whole vibe. In this case, it was employed to introduce their cover of XTC's "Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead," originally recorded for the 1994 film Dumb and Dumber. XTC was a huge influence on CTD's sound, and you could follow that thread of inspiration through their set list.
Toronto guitarist Stuart Cameron, who has toured with the Dummies since 2001, in addition to the likes of Matthew Good and Ashley MacIsaac, stood out wonderfully at times. Following a typically somber version of "Superman's Song" from 1991's The Ghosts That Haunt Me, where the crowd sang along so loud at times that they almost drowned out the band, Cameron split the crowd into sections for the woos in the hook to "Afternoons & Coffeespoons" from God Shuffled His Feet, among other antics.
Combined with Brad's brother Dan Roberts on bass and touring keyboardist Leith Fleming-Smith, who whipped out a keytar at one point, Crash test Dummies managed to wind the clock back. One could only imagine what effect Ellen Reid's tambourine would have had if it survived the flight from Dallas. She said all she could do was dance, but she brought more than that to the table. I'd also like to imagine what it would look like to see Jon Hamm play Brad Roberts in the Crash Test Dummies biopic that we all deserve.