The New Pornographers

Despite a career spanning over a decade, the New Pornographers had, until last night, never played in Nova Scotia. As if to make up for lost time, the band tore in to “Sing Me Spanish Techno” to kick off a set that drew equally from all the records in their acclaimed back catalogue. Despite occasional sound difficulties, the set amounted to a power-pop master-class, Carl Newman’s big pop hooks lifted by harmonies from Kathryn Calder and the tambourine-wielding Neko Case. Newer material “Crash Years” and “Your Hands (Together)” slotted in perfectly alongside older hits such as “My Rights Verses Yours.” Returning to the stage for an encore that contained “no subtlety, just rock,” the New Pornographers brought the night to an end with a rapturously received “Slow Descent into Alcoholism” and left the crowd hoping that it isn’t another 13 years before the band return.