Dan Mangan and Jenn Grant Live

Last night I had the pleasure of taking in a fantastic show downtown featuring two and Canada's most talented musicians- Dan Mangan and Jenn Grant. Mangan, a native of Vancouver, British Columbia gained wide acclaim with his first full-length album, Postcards and Daydreaming, and over the course of touring that album for the past three and a half years, has developed a devoted fan base all across the country. In kind, Dan opened the show in his typical scene-stealing fashion. Armed with just his guitar, his excellent song-writing and his mind-blowing voice, Dan silenced the entire room. During his performance of "Journal of a Narcoleptic," a track from his first album, you could have heard a pin drop. Throughout his all-too-short set, I found myself constantly holding my breath without even realizing it, totally fixed on the stage. I just have not come across any musician, indie, major-label, or otherwise that commands the attention of a crowded room the way Dan can, and that ability is purely a function of talent, not of any kind of trick or overwrought showmanship. He's just spectacularly talented, end of story. He finished off his set with the heart-wrenching "Basket-" an ode to his own grandfather, but more broadly, to the anxieties of aging- and with the always delightful sing-along, "Robots" which found him in the middle of the crowd, guitar unplugged, the whole room stomping, clapping and singing along to the final refrain "Robots need love, too. They want to be loved by you." After his set, I had the chance to talk to him for a few moments at his merch table, and just as he was the last time I saw him at JunoFest, he was absolutely gracious, friendly and willing to talk to anyone who had a minute to spare. Dan has just released a teaser EP called Roboteering in anticipation of the August release of his new full-length record Nice, Nice, Very Nice that features track such as "Robots," a spoken word collaboration with Vancouver beat poet Shane Koyczan called "Tragic Turn of Events/Move Pen Move," and a beautiful collaboration with Vancouver composer/experimental pop artist Veda Hille called "The Indie Queens are Waiting." I'd highly recommend checking it out and seeing Dan as soon as possible. With talent like his, he won't be playing little rooms for much longer.

After a bit of an intermission, the adorable and endearingly crazy Jenn Grant took the stage with her two-piece backing band. Admittedly, I was a little behind the curve on the whole Jenn Grant thing. She just released an album to great acclaim this year and has been touring non-stop and playing very prestigious shows all over North America, and yet I never really caught on with the record or the live show, despite a few half-hearted efforts to do so. And so, the only thing I had to go on heading into the show was an enormous amount of hype and no real, concrete expectations. Recipe for disaster? Luckily, Jenn's beautiful blend of art pop, folk and country, matched with her dipped-in-syrup voice, and accompanied by bass clarinet, glockenspiel, and violin, confirmed and validated every bit of press I've heard bout her over the past few months. Initially a bit closed-up and seemingly distant, Jenn really opened up as her set went on and she danced through song after song of delicate melodies with the most expert precision. I never once heard a note out of place or a misshapen phrase. She just has a natural talent for flitting through her vocal range with a unique blend of grace, delicacy and very real power. I'd like to point out a few highlight songs from Jenn's set, but, as I'm basically ignorant when it comes to her album, I don't know any of the tracks by name. However, every tune was delightful and she put a smile on every face in the room. Perhaps the highlight of the whole evening, though, was when Dan Mangan joined Jenn on stage during her set to perform a collaborative version of Dan's song "So Much For Everyone," which they claim was a seat-of-the-pants kind of exercise. Regardless of how long they spent preparing, the result was spectacular and something I'll remember for a long, long time.

Overall, a great night, a great crowd, a great room, and even more motivation to see Jenn and Dan again in the future.