If you're going to go out, do it in spectacular fashion. The
boys of Alexisonfire – George Petit, Dallas Green, Wade MacNeil, Chris Steele
and Jordan Hastings more than lived up to that statement, saying goodbye to
thousands of Calgary fans Thursday night at a packed BMO Centre on the Stampede
Grounds.
"There sure are a lot of you," the shirtless Petit, who later put on two shirts
solely to rip them off moments later, remarked early in the show. "We did two
nights at Mac Hall once, I thought it was just the same people coming out both
nights. Apparently not."
The band kicked off their tour in London December 2nd and visit
Brazil and Australia before hitting Vancouver December 17th. The
insane around the world schedule wraps up with shows in Montreal, a 4 night
stand in Toronto and a final show in Hamilton December 30th. The
travel would take its toll on anyone, but the band showed no signs of
exhaustion as they took the stage with Young Cardinals and Boiled
Frogs.
At every concert Petit has told the crowd "this isn't a
funeral. This is a wake, a celebration." The statement was true, as the band
blazed through 23 songs from their decade together. Songs like Pulmonary Archery,
Born and Raised and We Are The Sound had "the kids" jumping up and
down and being completely absorbed in the moment. When the band slowed it
down... as much as Alexisonfire does – with Rough Hands, You Burn First and
The Northern, the BMO centre echoed with the voices of the faithful
singing along.
The end of set, capped off with This Could Be Anywhere in the World and Happiness
by the Kilowatt left the band and fans drenched in sweat, satisfied, and
admittedly a little sad. If this is in fact the final time Alexisonfire will
grace a stage in Calgary, the evening was a perfect ending. Any concerns about
bitterness or strife in the band, about rust from not having performed together
in 2 years was quickly eliminated. This was 5 guys giving it their all to give
their fans one final amazing memory of what, to many of them was the only band
ever.