REVIEW BY: JIM & LISE DONALDSON
Pacific Coliseum, Vancouver, B.C.
Thursday, November 16, 2000

Opiated, Satiated!! The quintet from Kingston delivered the goods Thursday night with their second show at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver. If you have never been to a Hip concert, this is the one to see. If you've been to 50, this one rocks. Over 30 songs packed into almost three solid hours of music.

Your humble reporter and his lovely spouse arrived at the venue around 4:30 PM, on a chilly west coast afternoon. We were met by our program director and host extrordinaire Ross, and taken to the bowels of the arena to watch the bands soundcheck. Standing next to Gord D. among the floor seats while watching Johnny Fay and Rob Baker jam was a rush. This tours set design is kind of a rural prairie look , with wheat field backdrops and Harvest moon overhead. A very cool light show highlights the band nicely.

The crew are very friendly and everyone made us feel welcome and part of the show. After the sound check we went for a catered meal with the crew and assorted band members. After that we had about an hour to kill, so we went across the street from the arena to show off our all access passes and grab a beverage.

From the opening chords of Tiger the Lion, to the final blissful riffs of New Orleans is Sinking the crowd got their ya ya's out tonight. A few moments pop into my head, Gord Sinclair rocking during Save the Planet, Chris Brown's tasteful keyboards during Looking for a place to happen to start off the encore, Mr. D. shaking his Banana during Pigeon Camera.

Thanks to Canoe.ca, JAM!, and are the folks who made this such an awesome experience. Good luck to those lucky contest winners following me. You folks are in for a treat. My video will either be Wheat Kings or Pigeon Camera.

Jim Donaldson

Or as my wife Lise saw it;

Pure energy that I swear you could almost touch, was flowing off the stage as the Hip delivered one musical masterpiece after another. The boys are in fine form judging by the unbeatable talent and the smiles on their faces. These fellows have the unique ability to completely connect with their audience and keep the power building throughout the entire show.

Of course it was also extremely cool to know what the band did all afternoon and even what they ate for dinner as we were all fed together! I turned to Jim during a private viewing of Chagrin Falls at the Sound Check and told him I could probably die happily at that moment. Absolutely amazing experience enhanced by a whole lot of friendly people and our most gracious host, the internet guy, Ross.

Lise

Both my wife and I are HARDCORE Hip fans.

While we were travelling in South America the past few years we took every opportunity to spread the word to other travellers and locals alike about this FORCE from the NORTH.

You should see our video of some cool Otovalo musicians attempting Boots or hearts in Ecuador.

Anyway, contrary to what you may be thinking, 2 geezers in their thirties could do a hell of a job for you guys while having the time of our lives !! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE

-- Jim Donaldson