NOTE: All photos are copyright of Howard Shiau Photography 2025
It’s been non-stop touring for Canadian band Softcult the last six months, first supporting Movements and Mannequin Pussy, then headlining a tour this month up and down the east coast of the U.S. They closed out their current tour with a packed show at Mohawk Place in Buffalo on a frigid Friday night. Softcult’s last record, 2023’s “See You in the Dark”, was one of Just One More Concert’s top 5 albums of 2023. They have released three singles since then and we were excited to to hear/see both old and new music performed.
Glixen, a shoegaze band from Arizona, opened the night. I had listened to their music over the last month and really looked forward to their set. Unfortunately, they were immediately handicapped because one of their amps had broken whilst on the road. Luckily, Softcult was able to help out. Funniest line from a band: “We’re from Arizona. We’re so happy to be in Buffalo. It’s really cold. But I love this. I really love gloomy weather. It’s what I dream of when I’m there.”
The heavy sounds from Glixen’s guitars really set the mood. I don’t think I’ve ever seen two guitarist lean on their whammy bars for whole songs!! Unfortunately, we could not hear the vocals at all. Lead singer Aislinn Ritchie (does anyone else get Susanna Hoffs eyes here?) has a soft voice and the vocals really needed to be turned up. I understand that vocals on their records are also dampened but this was probably overkill. Also, muting down the drums a bit would have balanced the sound. While I enjoyed their music, I couldn’t get over the mix. I hope this was a one-off issue and look forward to seeing them again
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Softcult kicked off their set with “Haunt You Still”, a single released in November of last year. The harmonies that sisters Mercedes and Phoenix Arn-Horn are perfect, with handoffs that are so seamless that you couldn’t tell it happened if your eyes were closed. The song is a bit more introspective than most of their previous work, which had heavy focus on some of the evils of this world including misogyny and its associated attitudes and evil deeds (and going in the wrong direction here in the US), global warming, capitalism, etc. This is not to say the lyrics on “Haunt You Still” are not perfectly on point and heart wrenching, just different topically. Together with guitarist Brent McSwiggan (mostly chilling in the shadows) and bassist Phil Hirst (headbanging non-stop!), Softcult blew through a wonderful set, with Mercedes providing angry commentary in between some songs. If you came to see a shoegaze band and were not listening carefully to the lyrics, you missed out!
Best received songs, which the eager crowd sang along to, included “Spit It Out” and “Drain”. I was surprised that “Dress”, a hit from last year, did not make the setlist and the set was short (twelve songs) for a headlining tour. Nevertheless, it was a rousing success, with several people, who had not previously seen the band before, becoming instant fans! With several singles released this year, I hope to see a full studio record released this year, although I’m not sure when they’ll have time since they’re back on tour in the US this summer. I only expect big things from this band and may have to consider driving three hours to catch them in Cleveland!
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