grandson with Fake Shark @ Venue Nightclub (09/06/18)
The Toronto-raised, Los Angeles-based artist known as Grandson (stylized as “grandson”) stopped by the Venue Nightclub in Vancouver Thursday night. Jordan Edward Benjamin has been releasing singles under the moniker since late 2016 and released his debut EP with the label Fueled By Ramen this past June. Joining Grandson for the night was local band Fake Shark.
It was a bit of a late show, doors at 8, Fake Shark not hitting the stage till half past 9. The five members (vocalist Kevin Maher, guitarist Louis Wu, bassist Tony Dallas, drummer Alex Glassford, and keyboardist Jake Fox) spanned the stage in a picturesque fashion and gave their all during their 45-minute set. Newcomers to the band will be given the impression that Fake Shark released their debut full-length in 2017 but the album is just the first in a new chapter for the band formerly known as Fake Shark Real Zombie. Having released a few albums of sporadic rock with influences of pop, punk, rap, and screamo, the band seems to have hit the refresh button with 2017’s Faux Real, offering up a much tighter pop sound, the Real Zombie no longer a part of the name.
The guys put on a fun show, Maher showing off a seasoned charisma behind the mic, his long bleach blonde hair waving from the air of a fan, front and centre stage. The band played jams off their latest including the funky hit “Cheap Thrills” and the bouncy “Something Special.” The young sister duo out of White Rock by the name of Fionn joined them on stage for their 2018 single “Wake Up” and further into the set the band took things back to the 90’s with a cover of “No Scrubs” by TLC. A promising set from a band that’s been working the scene for a while now, here’s hoping this Vancouver band can garner some more attention in the coming years.
Grandson’s time to shine came twenty minutes to 11. The young artist took to the stage in a jean jacket hoodie and hyped the crowd up as his surrounding drummer, guitarist, and keyboardist started a thundering beat.
“I’m gonna have your attention for the next hour, I’m gonna take up every single minute, all I ask, you treat one another with respect, you get ready to have some fucking fun and throw some elbows. Vancouver if you can do that I need you to make some fucking noise.”
Grandson then removed the jacket and let out some shakes in front of the mic before dropping into one of his earlier releases, “Kiss Bang,” providing one hell of a start to a furious set. Instantly loveable, the skinny white guy with his curly locks flung his arms around in front of the mic and provided a genuine and raw performance from start to finish. With his heavily produced beats it wouldn’t have been a surprise to hear a backing track accompanying his vocals, but it was all him behind the mic, and he truly showed he’s got the talent to make this into a career.
“This next one is about a sickness. It’s a sickness that’s taken place here in Vancouver, it’s a sickness that’s taken place across Canada, across North America… I know that some of the people here have been personally affected by this shit.”
This was a part of a touching speech given before Grandson went into his 2018 hit “Overdose.” As this is written, the news of rapper Mac Miller’s death from an apparent overdose has begun to circulate the web, coming less than a month after the death of Kyle Pavone from the rock band We Came As Romans, both artists in their twenties. A song like this is more relevant than ever and Grandson did a fine job of paying respect to the issue.
He had plenty more to say throughout the set, spilling his heart on topics of mental health, self value, and thoughts on life, not afraid to admit he’s still trying to figure things out. The set was filled with all eleven of his released songs as well as a hidden oldie called “Things Change” and a new track that may never be released according to the singer, called “Medicine.”
A year ago, Grandson played at Westward Music Festival to a crowd of no more than 40 people, and Thursday night the Venue was filled with at least 200 fans. Grandson’s come a long way in a year and Thursday marked one of his first ever headlining shows. The artist wears his heart on his sleeve and his words are resonating with many new fans as he continues to spread his message. Who knows where he’ll be in another year, but it’s looking all uphill from here for this young man.
