TV Heart Attack Rev Up Vernon, BC Crowd

Going to see an indie band is always dicey – you never know if you’re going to be subjected to just downright awful music or will be surprised and delighted by the evening’s entertainment. The other night I attended TV Heart Attack at Club 29/29 in Vernon, BC, with this thought in mind. TV Heart Attack was on in a flash. Lead singer Jason Corbett said a quick and warm hello to the audience then right into the music, opening with ‘The Ghost Inside’, then into ‘Here and Now’, after which, he invited the audience to come right up front saying, “we sound better from closer.” (They sounded pretty damned good from further back too!)

‘The Boy Next Door’, ‘Wolves’ and ‘Hypnotic Eyes’ saw the audience not only coming closer, but dancing as they had with locals and opening band, Know Tomorrow – the ice was effectively broken, especially when the female drummer and her friend did a tongue in cheek rendition of squealing fan girls, squealing not only the singer’s name, but Bassist Ryan McDonell’s name as well. This elicited huge smiles from both men as well as perma-grins from guitarist Art Guest and drummer Dom Coletta. At one point, Jason shared his drink with the two ladies who squealed in feigned delight and fan-girlish ecstasy – much to the delight of all their friends in the audience.

The band continued with ‘Mean What You Say’, ‘Jane Doe’ and ‘AO’ at which point he invited Know Tomorrow, and closing band, The Rebellion, on stage, asking for people to come up and sing the chorus with them. “In fact, anyone in the audience who can sing, come on up and join us,” Jason invited – much to the delight of about 5 more audience members who climbed over the waist high railing to jump on stage and belt it out at a shared microphone... it was party central and the remaining audience loved every minute of it. ‘AO’ was over, the extraneous honorary band members left the stage and TV Heart Attack closed out their energetic setlist with ‘Nowhere Fast’ – also the closing song to their ‘Lost in the Sway’ CD.

For an indie band playing in a small town club, this band has a good clear sound, great tunes, and an energy on stage that rivals some of the greats; they know how to engage and include an audience.

TV Heart Attack also have a professionalism that will take them far. Jason made sure to mention/thank not only headliners The Rebellion, but thanked the opening band Know Tomorrow, for touring with them as well - not many bands pay heed to the opening act these days, let alone thank them in public. He also made a point to seek me out after the set list to thank me for taking photos (he’d seen me up front with my camera). Again – a first for me! I expect to hear big things in the future from this band.

Opening act, Know Tomorrow, was actually quite good. A five piece, with the previously mentioned female drummer who looked smooth and polished behind the kit. The band played a very eclectic mix of songs that ranged from Rock to Pop to almost Bluesy Folk and everything in between. Most of their songs were well over five minutes long, but being a local Vernon band, they had a large following of fans and friends in the crowd who were delighted to dance up a storm and jam to the tunes.