A trio of musicians, who had established a rapport with the audience before the show had begun, performed on and off stage in the Kamsack Playhouse Theatre on March 11.
The Middle Coast, a Winnipeg-based trio, who were admittedly suffering from a “food coma” from having over eaten at Kamsack’s Iron Grill restaurant shortly before ascending the stage, is comprised of three musicians who have been playing together since they were very young.
Dylan MacDonald, Liam Duncan and Roman Clarke sometimes lied about their age when they were 15 to acquire gigs in venues they were too young to frequent, according to their website.
Beginning the concert with a well-known Simon and Garfunkel tune,Cecilia, band-member MacDonald remarked onstage that “we started with a big hit you all know so you promise me that you won’t leave,” which elicited chuckles from the crowd.
Watching the group engaging with the Kamsack audience and encouraging audience participation brought to mind the paragraph from their website that included the descriptive words: “The Middle Coast’s impressive and engaging live sets have already earned them heaps of accolades.”
The three relatively youthful performers who have developed an easygoing, yet masterfully executed stage performance have done so by spending a lot of time working together. Their website states that through rigorous practice and self-scrutinized performances – recording and analyzing every single show – the band developed a unique musical synergy that makes its collective output far more striking than the sum of its individual parts.
The Middle Coast has its own way of making cover tunes sound vibrant and fresh, while at the same time familiar and relatable, it said.
The concert had the trio performing their original tunes as well.
Band member Duncan introduced one song this way: “We are going to take a dip into sad-ville right now and play a sad song. We do write a lot of songs about feelings, and our relationships, and when they don’t turn out right they becomes sad songs. We have a lot of sad songs.”
Other artists they covered included Paul McCartney, Otis Redding, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder and Lynard Skynard.
During intermission and post-concert the “Coasters” mingled with the audience, autographing CDs, sharing a lot of laughs and sharing their philosophy of life and music.
At one point, MacDonald tried to convince the audience that Sir Paul McCartney actually lived in Kamsack for 12 years and worked for a time serving tables at the Iron Grill.
“Thanks for coming out tonight Kamsack,’ he said to the audience. “This (performing) is so much more fun with people in the room.”
Humour, strong vocals and soulful harmonies, masterful musicianship and ingratiating personal charm were all components of The Middle Coast concert in Kamsack on March 10, audience members agreed.
Whether the group was onstage playing its full complement of instruments, or offstage with only acoustic guitar for accompaniment, The Middle Coast was entertainment to be savoured.
“I loved the band’s harmonies,” Allan Kondratoff said, after the concert. “They have very strong harmonies.”
Other audience comments included “they were very, very good.”
“Thank you guys for the concert tonight,” said Barb Trofimenkoff. “You were awesome!”
This was the first OSAC tour for The Middle Coast and it included 11 stops for the band. This concert marked the last of the Stars for Saskatchewan series of performances to be held at the Kamsack Playhouse Theatre for the 2016-17 season, but, according to Nikki Puterbaugh, chair of the Kamsack Community Arts Council, there will be more concerts held in the 2018-19 season.
