The Phillips Backyard Concert Series returned in August with the second of two festivals in Phillips Reverb.
The weekend featured a record setting day with the venue at full capacity.
If you wanted to rock out, the Friday of Reverb was the day to do it.
Kicking off the Friday was Victoria’s Acres of Lions. They’re one of those local bands that have stood the test of time. So many bands have come and gone in the music scene in the city, but Acres of Lions have lasted 17 years and have new music in the works.
Little Destroyer returned to the backyard after having played at Phillips in 2022. Frontwoman Allie Sheldan was as fierce on stage as ever. There was a minor mishap with a broken fret on Sheldan’s bass, but that only meant skipping one song.
Crown Lands was back in Victoria less than five months after blowing minds at the Royal Theatre opening for July Talk. The two-piece band’s prog rock chops are a sight and sound to behold live.
Another two popular Canadian two-piece band The Blue Stones put on another high energy set and changed the tone of the day to a more bluesy sound.
That was the perfect transition to Friday’s headliner, local legend Jesse Roper. His local fan base was in full force Friday night. Jesse Roper is one of those musicians where you’re guaranteed to have a good time when you see him. Noticeably absent from Roper’s band was drummer Steve Ling. I think this is the first time I’ve ever seen a Jesse Roper show without Ling. Roper performed more than an hour and half with a mix of old favourites and new songs he’s released recently.
Saturday at Reverb had one of the largest crowds for a Phillips Backyard event. By the end of the night the venue was at full capacity and word has it a record number of beer kegs were tapped.
Vancouver’s Babe corner started off the day performing alt-rock with four-part harmonies. The 5 ladies at one point were joined by headliner Peach Pit’s Christopher Vanderkooy on guitar for a song. Vanderkooy took the stage minus his signiture mustache.
Victoria’s The Bankes Brothers were another return act on the weekend having performed in 2022 like Little Destroyer. With their debut album finally set to come out soon The Bankes Brothers perform a full set of original music.
Ruby Waters returned for the first time since her sold out show at Capital Ballroom last November. One of the best parts of Waters’ live show is watching her bandmates bound around the stage interacting with each other and the audience.
It’s been nearly 6 years since Allen Stone was at the Phillips Backyard. His smooth soulful vocals and his charm on stage were as great as ever.
Closing out Day 2 and the biggest draw of the festival was Vancouver’s Peach Pit. The band confused those unfamiliar with the band by starting the set with a Slayer cover. Lead singer Neil Smith staged dived into the jam packed crowd twice.
Day 3 started with some high energy indie pop before settling down to folk for the rest of the day with Victoria’s Cold Fame. The band had to overcome an overheating laptop that was in the sun too long early on, but finished the set strong. They even fit in a Blink-182 cover.
Australia’s Steph Strings performed a solo set. You could clearly see and hear the Kim Churchill influence watching Strings perform. Her guitar playing looked effortless and sounded fantastic.
Local favourites Jon and Roy were up next. It was their third time performing at the Phillips Backyard, but the last time was in 2015. The
Queensland, Australia duo Hollow Coves were the final opening act. Ryan Henderson’s voice has a tone similar to Chris Martin of Coldplay and the band’s performance reminded me a bit like Victoria’s Current Swell if they were a folk band.
Fleet Foxes closed out Phillips Reverb returning to Victoria for the first time in 25 years. Hearing the six part harmonies was worth the wait.
