The Districts triumphant return to The Horseshoe

I was super-impressed with The Districts when I caught them opening for White Denim last year. When I saw they were coming back to town, to headline the very stage that I saw them début on, I jumped at the chance to take in their music and photograph them again.

They transfixed an otherwise excited and enthusiastic audience with their emotionally intense tunes. They seemed to have more focused energy than they did the first time I saw them. Is it just me, or did singer Rob Grote not make as much eye contact this time around?

When you photograph a band, and spend an otherwise inordinate amount of time staring at the band members as you edit the pics, you tend to remember them, so I noticed right away that their guitarist is new. According to the interwebs, their original guitar player decided to go to college. Tough decision considering The Districts are destined for greatness, at least in my humble opinion.

Here are some of my favourites from the set:

Opening tune "Peaches" from A Flourish and a Spoil. They played this one for Seth Meyer's audience.

"Rocking Chair" from The Districts

"Long Distance" from The Districts

"Funeral Beds" from The Districts

Main set closer "4th and Roebling" from A Flourish and a Spoil. They did a great job in their network TV début on Seth Meyers with this tune.

First encore tune "6 AM" from A Flourish and a Spoil. A fan video from the Toronto show.

Show closer "Young Blood" from A Flourish and a Spoil. What a fantastic extended jam ending.