A lot has changed in the world of Tegan and Sara Quin since they last played a headlining show in Chicago back in March, 2010. At that time they were an indie band with a loyal cult following touring in support of the Chris Walla-produced
Sainthood. After
Sainthood’s lackluster sales and tepid critical reception, it became apparent that the Quins were in danger of falling into a musical rut. The way out, they realized, was through exploiting the pop sensibilities which were vividly apparent on
Sainthood’s “Alligator”. Working closely with Warner Bros. inventive marketing department, the Quins went back to the studio with pop producer Greg Kurstin and opened 2013 with the release of the polished radio-friendly
Heartthrob and its either unbelievably catchy or unbelievably annoying first single “Closer” (I fall in the latter category). With Warner determined to sell the girls as hip, lesbian older sisters to Taylor Swift and Katy Perry, Tegan and Sara were soon everywhere: performing on
Ellen, having a version of “Closer” performed on
Glee, appearing onstage with Taylor Swift, even recording an
Oreo commercial. They spent most of 2013 as a support act for The Killers and fun. and will end 2014 with a support slot on Katy Perry’s
Prismatic tour.
They nearly swept the Canadian Juno Awards this year, winning the pop album, single, and group of the year awards. By all accounts, it’s a triumphant time for the Quins.
Tegan
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However, not everyone has been happy with this new direction. In embracing the mainstream and courting a new audience, Tegan and Sara have risked alienating the core group of fans that sustained them over the course of the previous decade. And sure enough a forum for “Recovering Tegan and Sara Fans” who have been heartbroken by what they see as a betrayal of the indie spirit has popped up on a lesbian chat board. As someone who was initially dismayed by the pop sound of
Heartthrob and finds the concept of my beloved Quins touring with the likes of Katy Perry disappointing, I get it. After my dislike of “Closer,” I was braced to hate
Heartthrob too. However, my girlfriend knocked some sense into me when I expressed dismay about the new pop direction: “Yes, because they were so
avant-garde before.” Sure enough, a few listens to
Heartthrob and I realized that whether the backing track has a synth or an acoustic guitar, Tegan and Sara have always been about writing catchy pop songs. Only now they’re getting a lot more radio play from them.
Sara
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So as Tegan and Sara rode into Chicago for two headlining nights at The Vic I was curious to see how this dichotomy between the old-school T&S fans and the newer radio listeners would play out. During the course of both shows, it was clear that the Quins were trying to please both their old and new fanbase, drawing songs equally from
Heartthrob and their earlier releases. In fact, they made sure to emphasize they were playing a string of “oldies” in the middle of the set for their core fanbase. Several comments throughout the shows expressed appreciation for their fans regardless of whether “you just heard us recently or if you’ve been listening to us since
If It Was You [2002]”. In other words, Tegan and Sara
know. They
know their new direction worries their old fans. They
know they’ve lost some fans over it. And they want
you to know that they know. Change is hard, but really, this isn’t Bob Dylan at the Newport Folk Festival. And as I viewed the audience reaction, I realized that the fans I’d pre-judged as ‘old skool’ were jumping around to ‘Closer’ and the fans I’d pre-judged as newbies were belting out the chorus to ‘Back in Your Head’ – and it was delightful to see such a unified, enthusiastic response.
“Enthusiastic” is almost an understatement. My girlfriend remarked that she had never seen a show where the audience all sang along loudly with every word of every song. In fact, during the crowd favorite ‘Call It Off’ (from 2007’s
The Con), Tegan stood back and let the crowd handle the first verse without her help, a broad smile on her face. Moments like this abounded, as the fans shouted along with “Now I’m All Messed Up” (“Go! Go!! Go if you want, I can stop you!!!”), “The Con” (“Encircle me, I need to be taken down!”), “Back in Your Head” (you know the chorus) or , perhaps most touchingly, ‘Shock To Your System’: “What you are is lonely!” I felt that catharsis that comes from communal moments like this: the feeling that you’re sharing a very special moment with a group of strangers. The only other act I’ve seen that I can compare to this level of audience connection is Morrissey. The enthusiasm was so contagious that I even caught myself singing along and dancing to the hated “Closer”. Damn those catchy Quins!
Sara on the keyboard
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The strength of the songs is only one key to the appeal Tegan and Sara; their open, honest, and engaging personalities are perhaps an even bigger factor. Tegan and Sara have long been known for their amusing onstage banters – and a brief search through You Tube will reveal a slew of adorable moments recorded by fans over the years. Unfortunately, these two shows were light on banter (perhaps due to the 10:50 p.m. venue curfew), but during the first show Sara managed to fit in an amusing anecdote about an appearance during the
So Jealous era (2004) where people were blowing up condoms and tossing them her way. As a lesbian, Sara said, it was “like my first sexual experience” before she suggested to us that if we want to blow-up condoms and bat them at her, we should put a $20 bill in the condom first, because “I only appreciate condom balloons if there’s something in it for me, besides semen”. Other endearingly human moments came when Sara flubbed a lyric and laughed it off and when Tegan interrupted the beginning of “Where Does the Good Go?” to confirm with Sara that she was playing the right chords. Sara also confessed that listening to the amazing voice of Angelica Allen (of opener My Midnight Heart*) makes them consider whether they should really be vocalists. These moments of frailty just make us love them all the more.
Tegan
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Of course, there are minor complaints I can make about the setlist or the band member contributions, or even the less-than-compelling cover of Pete Townshend’s “Let My Love Open The Door” that capped the appearances, but to complain about such things seems ridiculously petty when considering the celebratory nature of the shows. Sara talked about how during their early supporting gigs, they would often go back to their motel room and cry and fight when shows didn’t go well. She had started applying for college, thinking that Tegan was a ridiculous dreamer for thinking they had a future in the music industry.  The fact that it is 2014 and the two girls from Calgary continue to produce great pop songs and perform them in front of an enthusiastic crowd that sings along with their every word – that’s something worth cheering about!
* And speaking of the openers, The Courtneys (whose drummer, Jen Payne, is Tegan and Sara’s cousin) started the shows with their fun garage punk-pop to an enthusiastic reception, before Angelica Allen of My Midnight Heart held us all in-thrall with her astounding stage presence and voice, though the rest of the band and the songs themselves don’t live up to her potential. (“The rhythm section should enjoy the two weeks they have left with her,” said my girlfriend, implying that Angelica will be enjoying the fruits of a major label solo career soon.)
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