Throw Me the Statue / Idle Tigers

When a pint-sized chap in argyle socks and a red neckerchief declares "this song is called the ‘Small Electrical Lieutenant’ and it is idiotic,” you can be sure you aren’t in the presence of a typical Toronto indie rock supporter. In fact, it turned out that Idle Tigers’ Ross Hawkins came to us by way of the grim northern English town of Bradford. His energetic cabaret-cum-electro circus act, steeped in Gothic imagery from his native Yorkshire, collided in rhyming comedy couplets, delivered on coordinated ruby red mandolin and various interconnected keyboards. Unfortunately, the result of this complicated wiring installation was epic sound issues, which even Hawkins’ quick-witted quips couldn’t disguise. The sound hiccups continued into the opening song of Throw Me the Statue’s set, but thankfully disappeared as quickly as Idle Tigers’ squealing groupies. Even the dwindling crowd couldn’t dull the spirit of indie rock poster boy Scott Reitherman and his Seattle four-piece however, as they scissor-kicked and grinned their way through some less solid numbers and into their new album’s instant classics "Lolita” and self-proclaimed "iPod song,” the electro-tastic "Yukaton.” With more instrument-swapping than a brain surgery convention, an extra tom and snare drum up front for them to thrash on occasionally and some serious tambourine action, TMTS filled the room with their harmonies and unpretentiousness in such a way to make it more basement dance party than professional rock show. So much so that when Reitherman proudly sang, "My favourite place is a palindrome,” the crowd — now down to a dozen — seemed fully prepared to join him in it.