Damn, Army Girls: you guys killed it at Parts and Labour. Part of me wants to use this blog post just to spill giddy expletives to express how good that set was.  But another other part recognizes that this usually doesn’t translate well.

Parts and Labour has one of those basement spaces that seem small, intimate and pretty dingy when you arrive but it has a way of expanding to accommodate the energy that builds on a good night. Army Girls made the place feel huge.

The duo – Carmen Elle on vocals and guitar and Andy Smith on drums – have been on the scene together as Army Girls since 2010. Last summer they opened for Austra, playing their debut EP Close to the Bone but last night they broke out a whole new set list.

For those who aren’t yet familiar with Army Girls, their instrumental sound is raw and tense. Elle sings her heart out – her voice is loud and strained but also cottony (special thanks to OTMer Layton Wu for suggesting the adjective ‘cotton’).

They played their set under some very low light – just Parts and Labour’s spotlights and some Christmas lights adorning the ceiling – but they were soon illuminated by a fairly constant stream of flashes from indie media and spectators. Elle’s presence was high energy. As a tall lanky kid with a camera, I hesitate to use these words, but they rocked out… proper.

Though their sound is loud and raw, they’re tight and their instruments complement each other excellently. All the while Elle pulled off some serious moves. I’m not sure to what degree this was planned, but Carmen definitely kicked one of her shoes far away into the corner of the bar at one point.

The band ended their set with “The Power,” off of their first EP.  Single shoed, commanding a corner of the room and surrounded by a tightly packed semi circle of CMW kids, Carmen belted out the repetitive final lyric,  “Your past, your lack, your cruelty – the power you’ll never have over me,” bringing their set to a climactic close.

I know next time I wander down into that space, I’ll be very astounded at how small it really is.

Photos by Andrew Weir