#Arkells is at your service and ready to take your call at the Fillmore in Detroit
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We are still recovering from the night we had with Arkells at the Filmore. It had been a long time coming for us as we hadn’t caught Arkells since their Rally Cry tour. Of course, you can click the link and see that or hear about our adventures at this show.
The night was filled with memories and fond new ones as we were reunited with old friends and made new ones by the front rail of the show. Dedicated fans of the band listed all of the shows they’ve attended, and some revealed new tattoos inspired by the band. Not only did we see a few state tattoos (“Relentless”), but we saw their touring logo as well.
The night started off with their opener and a good friend of ours, Rober Delong, who was sporting a new haircut (as a friend of ours mentioned to us before he jumped on stage). This time around, Adam (Drummer), who is normally with him, was not there, well, not on stage. Of course, if you haven’t seen one of the shows, you are missing out on a cool experience.
Soon after that, it was time for Arkells to appear. The set was adron with a laundry line with the band name spelled with each t-shirt. It started out with Max walking on stage with a laundry basket filled with clothes that would soon reveal a surprise. He then walked over to the laundry line, removing a shirt to reveal that it said: “Welcome to the show.” Just like that, the rest of the group shows up before getting into the first song.
They started the night off with Skins, which is off from their new album Laundry Pile (hence the decor), before getting into fan favorites like Past Lives and Leather Jacket. The show was a variety of favorites and fresh takes. Some we were expecting to hear didn’t make the cut, but others were a true surprise, like “Oh, The Boss is Coming” and Whistleblower off their first album.
Later on in the set, there was a moment where we got to see what that laundry basket was for a fan to pick a shirt from. However, this time, Anthony picked it from it, revealing Time would be the next song they would play. This is the song they have yet to play live on tour. At another point in the show, the phone rang. This was a fan interactive moment as fans had the chance to call a number, leaving a voice mail asking for their favorite song to hear live at their show. The Detroit show fan requested Savannah.
When you thought the interact moments were over, you have never been to an Arkells show. These guys are all hands-on and party-on kind of band. Speaking of the party, they brought Rober Delong on stage during their song Dance with You. Not only was there dancing and Max with a bubble gun, but even a mini dance battle was happening in the crowd as Max made his way into the crowd with a bubble gun in hand.
Did you think he would return to the crowd after that song? If you said yes, you either knew it or got the hint. A fan helped out for the acoustic moment with a giant spotlight during the song “laundry pile.” It was a fun, quiet moment as many fans wrapped their arms around each other (including us), swaying to an off-beat movement.
As for the rest of the show, we got two covers; one just happened to be from The Temptations. They paid tribute to them, knowing they were playing right next door to them at the Fox Theatre. The night ended with their newest popular song, “You Can Get It.” We got it. It was a great night with friends and memories we will never forget. It's always great to see these guys. I'm glad to see they made it to the Filmore.
More on ARKELLS
Hailed by The Globe and Mail as “the right kind of band for this decade,” Arkells are widely considered one of the most passionate, exuberant and in-demand live bands working today. As radio mainstays, sports-sync shoe-ins and curious students of culture, Arkells have remained ever present – building awareness and personal community experiences around their live shows and new music at every turn. The most emblematic example of this being The Rally, Arkells' beloved hometown concert event that’s been hailed as one of the biggest headline shows in the country, with record breaking attendance. Arkells continue to release new music and international tour dates.
Arkells’ singles “Skin” and title track “Laundry Pile” from the band’s forthcoming album of the same name (slated for September 21st) arrive via Virgin Music.
There’s been no shortage of new music from Arkells over the last two years, having released their Blink Once and Blink Twice projects, featuring collaborations with the likes of Cold War Kids, K.Flay, Tegan and Sara, Aly & AJ and Wesley Schultz of The Lumineers, ahead of the introduction to brand new album, Laundry Pile.
What became Laundry Pile caught the band by surprise, as they weren’t actively planning the next record to come this quickly. Much of Arkells’ most recognizable material aims to be spirited and anthemic, but this collection of songs are more personal, pensive, and reserved. It’s the kind of album that is one cohesive listening experience - in keeping with the spirit of the classic singer-songwriter tradition.
The project took shape earlier this year. Arkells got together with a goal to work on acoustic renditions of recent material, jam and hang out, but very quickly started ruminating on other little ideas. “I brought in some demos I had been working on - they were little conversations with myself,” continues Kerman. “I had no expectations to do anything with the material, but then the band came to the rescue. It was very all-hands-on-deck. The more we meditated on the music, the more connected we became to the songs and to each other. It was one of the most deeply creative experiences we’ve had as a band so far. It’s important to simply honour the moment you’re in, and that’s what we did.”
