The Walker Theatre
November 13th, 1998
by: Rhayne

Friday the thirteenth, a supposed "unlucky day"...i disagree. The show was being held at the walker theatre, THE place for concerts because the sound there is truly amazing. I met up w/ my friends and off we went to find our seats...3rd row, center : ) We were all impressed w/ how close we were to the stage.
Brian Cook (92 citi fm DJ) soon walked out and introduced the 1st band: Mayfield Four. I had heard one of their songs on the radio on the way to the theatre, but other than that, i had no clue what to expect. I was really impressed by them. They has a Jeff Buckley-like feel to their music, the singer, Myles, even ressembled Jeff both vocally and physically. Unfortunately the crowd wasnt into them, so the band received very little feedback. On the last song they played, the Myles flipped on his guitar sending his guitar pick out into the crowd, once the band was finished and off stage, i went up w/ a few friends...i found the pick : )
The crowd was given the chance to stand up front for the rest of the show, I gladly went up. I was situated right upfront (i could extend my arm out and touch the stage) and center. i was proud of my positionment for the simple fact that i was planning on taking pictures. The next act, Big Wreck, finally walked out on stage. they opened up w/ the song Look At What I Found. I was right infront of lead singer/guitarist, Ian. The crowd was really into them, jumping and dancing around. Ian thanked the crowd which had gathered by the front of the stage and invited more to join us. I soon found out that i was in the D.F.B.B.S. (drunk flirty blonde bimbo section)..not good, but i guess it made me stand out. Danny the lead singer of The Watchmen, joined Big Wreck on stage to play keyboards on the song Under the Lighthouse (a personal fave of mine). throughout the whole set Ian was very energetic, walking right up front of the stage, jumping around, etc... They finished their set w/ their hit song The Oaf, and claimed that if we clapped and screamed enough that they would be back for an encore. The crowd did as they were told, and soon the band came out on stage once more. they invited the singer of mayfield four and joey the guitarist from the watchmen on stage and together they performed a brilliant cover of an old led zepplin song. a great way to end their set.
Lastly, The Watchmen were up. the crowd was greatly anticipating them, seeing that winnipeg is their home town. I realized that i had only 7 pics left for the watchmen, i hadnt even realized that i had taken so many pics of Big Wreck. The Watchmen opened up w/ Stereo, bringing the crowd to their feet. It was hard to tell who was more excited the crowd or the 4 men on stage. Danny was very frantic and energetic throughout their whole set, so was Ken, making it difficult to take pictures of him. Midway through the set, a keyboard was brought out for Danny. They then played Brighter Hell, asking the crowd to clap along during most of the song. For the bands whole set, the crowd danced and sang along. they finished their set w/ the song Say Something, once the song was done, the crowd clapped, screamed and stomped their feet wildly until the band came out again. They played Bone Yard Tree, and then asked the guys of Big Wreck to join them on stage. The Watchmen closed off in a very similar way to Big Wreck's. Along w/ Big Wreck, they played a cover of a classic rock song. Yet another great way to end a great show. We left soon after, unfortunately, the day after, i heard of a rumored 2nd encore : (
All in all, excellent show and a nice "home coming" for The Watchmen. Like Danny said, we should really cherish the Walker.