A good sized crowd of a couple hundred people relived the ’90s at Pulse, June 28 with Vancouver punk-pop band Gob and Burlington rock band Finger 11.
Considering neither band had played together for about two years before this tour, it goes to show just because you haven’t 
played together for a while, it doesn’t mean you’ve lost that special something.
Gob was up first with thundering bass and catchy guitar hooks.
Tom Thacker and Theo Goutzinakis traded lead vocals combining the raw energy and goofy fun the band is best known for.
While Thacker provided most of the brooding intensity (as brooding as Gob gets anyway), Goutzinakis, especially provided the fun, mugging for the audience, making funny faces and leaping around.
They didn’t say
much to the crowd other than to thank everyone for coming out, though Goutzinakis noted “You probably noticed we re playing a lot of the old shit for you.”
The crowd knew it as everyone was singing along, crowded in front of the stage, shouting “turn it up.”
I couldn’t decipher much of the vocals through the bass heavy mix, but the band was tight, especially seeing as they were only four or five shows into their first tour in two years.
Thier big hit “I Hear You Calling,” came midway through the set, they got the crowd to sing t
he chorus and proved why drunk people shouldn’t sing. They played one new song, I think, — a slower, more melodic ballad — but I didn’t hear their other big hit “Give Up The Grudge.”
On the other hand, Finger 11 was all about the hits.
They started with their newer, more classic rock inspired material before moving onto the detuned post grunge they are known for. “Pieces Fit,” was in the first part of the show.
“Living In a Dream,” was among the highlights as was “Drag You Down” and “Whatever Doesn’t Kill Me,” which wound down their set.
Midway through the show, they broke out the acoustic guitars for the ballad portion of their show including their biggest hit “One Thing.” Then they turned it up.
Together they sounded like the bastard child of April Wine and Our Lady Peace if they were adopted by Tool.
James Black’s guitar solos were beautiful and melodic and bald headed vocalist Scott Anderson still has an impressive set of pipes.
They were called back for an encore which ended with their big hit “Paralyzer.”
