Ben Massey | 06/11/22
Montreal-based indie rockers We Are Monroe hit The Mansion last Friday for a night of impressive guitar riffs. Despite this only being the band’s second time in Kingston, they blew the roof off the place.
To start off the night were two local Kingston bands – Automatic Joy and Paper Ladies, certainly ones I will be checking out again. Being my first gig at The Mansion since moving to Canada, they showed me exactly what the music scene in Kingston is all about. It’s about expressing yourself, getting up on stage and giving the crowd a good night, one that goes through the midnight hours too. I found Automatic Joy were on the grungy and hard-hitting side, and their aesthetic lived up to it.
Paper Ladies, on the other hand, were a little more upbeat and got the crowd moving in time for We Are Monroe. One thing that really surprised me about Paper Ladies was the bassist’s five-string bass. I would normally associate a five-string with jazz music, but I think the fact that they managed to pull it off in a rock band goes to show their musical talent.
We Are Monroe came on after a long pause to ensure their instruments sounded perfect, something I really appreciate from a live band. I particularly commend the lead’s vocals: they were something not to be missed for the night. As they echoed through the room you could start to see the passion of both crowd and band merge together into one. It has been a long time (for me at least) since going to my last gig, and it was amazing to get back out and experience the dopamine in your system again. If like me, you need another hit of dopamine before we enter the long cold winter, We Are Monroe are your answer to that. If there’s an indie band to keep your eyes on for a good night here in Canada, it’s We Are Monroe.
If you get the chance, go and check out all of these bands on Spotify and live. They will all give you exactly what any punk needs every once and a while: a solid night of guitar-driven tunes to bang your head away to.
Edited by: Roxann Yus
Photography by: Ben Massey