Pop-Punk band Meet Me @ The Altar Mae a stop at the Velvet Underground on a Tuesday night in Toronto. After two years of opening bands such as Green Day, the band is embarking on their first headlining tour with Daisy Grenade and Young Culture as supporting acts. Fans young and old arrived at the venue to party and mosh pit to the nostalgia of pop punk music from the band.
Daisy Grenade was the first opener, and they brought their energetic mix of alternative, grunge, and pop-rock music to the forefront. The duo consisting of Dani Nigro and Keaton Whittaker captivated the audience with their interactions with the crowd and their chemistry on stage. For their first show in Canada, Daisy Grenade interested the crowd in hearing more from the duo.
Pop-rock band Young Culture was the next opener to keep the energy going during the night. Their brand of alternative pop got the audience singing word by word. Lead vocalist Alex Magnan was smiling throughout the whole set and even got off the stage to sing with the crowd. Young Culture kept the party flowing from beginning to end to get the crowd ready for the headliner.
Lineup:
Alex Magnan – Lead vocalist
Gabe Pietrafesa – Guitar
Troy Burchett – Guitar
Setlist:
1. Not In Love
2. Drift
3. Better Off as Friends
4. Fantasy
5. Silver Lining
6. Shiver
7. Holiday In Vegas
8. Serendipity
9. Different Now
10. Kinda Over It
Music of nostalgia was imminent, with artists such as Katy Perry, Demi Lovato, Jonas Brothers, and more playing to energise the crowd before Meet Me @ The Altar arrived onstage. After Charli XCX’s “Vroom Vroom” stopped playing midway, a recording announced the band’s arrival. Edith Victoria, Téa Campbell and Ada Juarez arrived with the crowd shouting in excitement before the start of their set, “Say It (To My Face).” Edith’s vocals sounded almost exactly like the recording as she breezed through the song while Téa rocked on her guitar and Ada effortlessly played her drums. Edith ordered a mosh pit during “Hit Like A Girl,” and the crowd answered by moshing in the middle of the audience with no regrets. What got the crowd excited was the band performing a trio of covers: Alanis Morissette’s “You Oughta Know,” Avril Lavigne’s “Complicated,” and Christina Vidal’s “Take Me Away.”
The band is known for their chill and laid-back attitude, and it showed in between songs as the members casually had a conversation with each other about how their day went and how cold it was here in Toronto. A concerning but funny moment was when Ada injured her hand during “May The Odds.” After performing an acoustic version of “Feel A Thing,” a crowd offered a band-aid to the delight of Ada and the band as they jokingly praised Canada and put down the USA.
The night went on as Meet Me @ The Altar performed “A Few Tomorrows,” and “Kool,” with which they had just released a music video with the song. The songs are featured in their debut studio album, Past // Present // Future. They ended the night with the song they gained popularity in 2020, “Garden.” Meet Me @ The Altar is bringing pop-punk music back to the forefront, and the fact the trio loves what they do made the show a memorable night. The band showed that pop punk is here to stay and it is a genre where everyone belongs.
Lineup:
Edith Victoria – Lead vocalist
Téa Campbell – Guitar, bass
Ada Juarez – Drummer
Setlist:
1. Say It (To My Face)
2. Hit Like A Girl
3. T.M.I
4. You Ougtha Know / Complicated / Take Me Away
5. Rocket Science
6. May the Odds
7. Feel A Thing (Acoustic)
8. King of Everything
9. Try
10. Now Or Never
11. A Few Tomorrows
12. Kool
13. Garden
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Andrew Wu is a music photographer based in Toronto, Canada. His work focuses on capturing and documenting special moments of performers during concerts and various events. His photos have been featured such as music publications in Spill Magazine, Imprint Entertainment, and Patchchord News. In 2020, he completed his BFA in photography at OCAD University.
Andrew is a massive fan of music, as he enjoys a variety of genres such as pop, alternative, rock, hardcore, and metal.