By: Gemma Mastroianni
Church on Sunday played to a busy crowd at Toronto's Lee's Palace this past Saturday. The band consists of Ryan Preiano on guitar and vocals, Ian Fragomeni on drums, and Jake Gordon on bass. They closed out the show with Black Paint, Twice Bleached, and Cigar Club performing prior.
I was stoked for this show! Most performances I've seen at Lee's Palace have been from touring bands from out of the country, so it was exciting to see some locals at one of Toronto's well-known venues.
Church on Sunday took the stage around 11 p.m. Their heavy-hitting tracks had the crowd dancing through the whole set, from start to finish. The bands' coordinated black-and-white theme, even going so far as matching instruments, added a unique touch to their stage presence.
The band played for just over an hour including some new and old tracks. I really enjoyed their punk-rock covers of "Ice, Ice, Baby," and "Blitzkrieg Bop." It added a nice touch to their already enjoyable and fun set, getting the crowd even more pumped! I especially enjoyed the cover of "Ice, Ice, Baby" as it was definitely unexpected, and I had never heard a remix like so before. It was fun to hear a punk twist to it, and a great way to get the crowd excited.
The show was mostly upbeat and exciting, and the crowd was into it. People were scattered throughout Lee's Palace at the beginning of the set however as the set continued throughout the night, just about everyone in the room was gathered into the center pit. This made for a fun environment and overall positive energy in the room!
All of the band members had a fun and exciting energy to them and were each very skilled in their individual roles. Preiano's voice sounded true to his recordings, and his interactions with the crowd throughout the show created a genuine connection between the audience members and performers. Fragomeni's drumming was precise and tight, and overall very impressive- he never missed a beat (definitely a must-see). Gordon totally killed it on bass and had fantastic stage presence, moving around throughout the stage for plenty of the set. Overall the band was in synch and had a great connection between one another on-stage, were evidently stoked to be there, and super talented at what they do.
If you're looking for a fun punk-rock show, definitely check out Church on Sunday's next performance. It was the perfect way to end a fun Saturday night - they put on one hell of a party!