Warped 45s Would Benefit From NQ Arbuckle's Grit

You won't meet a nicer, funnier guy than Neville Quinlan, but you'd have a tough time inferring that from watching the growling, badass dude who leads NQ Arbuckle on stage.

Quinlan has spent almost 10 years molding his band into a gritty hoedown-rock outfit, and by all accounts, they've finally arrived at the end he envisioned. It only took a few minutes of NQ Arbuckle's opening set for everyone in the Horseshoe Tavern to realize The Warped 45s were going to have to pull off a miracle performance to make good on their top billing (the two bands actually played the same location back in December, but NQ Arbuckle headlined then).

Quinlan — who was at his foul-mouthed best — was an absolute assault on the senses. Aside from a brief respite to deliver "Officer Down" from the band's Let's Just Stay Here collaboration with Carolyn Mark, NQ Arbuckle were all raucous rock and repeated improvised breakdowns, during which a sweat-drenched Quinlan would bark, "Who makes the rules? I make the fuckin' rules!"

"X O K" (from the 2008 NQ Arbuckle album of the same name) birthed a rarely-seen spate of dancing couples that lasted through to the intermission. It tired out enough audience members that the up-front crowd was noticeably sparse by the time The Warped 45s arrived.

These two bands might have had some overlapping appreciators a few years ago, but today they're heading in very different stylistic directions. The Warped 45s have emerged as a finesse outfit on Matador Sunset, their second disc — taking a calculated and usually careful approach to roots rock — and the result is a skillfully executed, though relatively tame, show.

As expected (this was a CD release show), The Warped 45s focused solely on new material to kick off their performance: "The Blade Thrower's Wife" (which should by all rights be a Decemberists song), "Hurdle River Crossing," "Pale Horse," "Talk About Evil" and "Victoria Day" (which features the best Gord Downie impression this side of Bobcaygeon).

They did eventually hit up their 10 Day Poem For Saskatchewan debut, but only briefly. Matador Sunset's "Grampa Carl" — which works measurably better in person than on disc — was their most memorable offering.

The Warped 45s are certainly a cordial and earnest bunch, but some additional grit and anger — to match the evil lurking in their lyrics — would push them in a more entertaining direction. A rowdy audience is a happy audience.