Saint Levant at the Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver – Live Review

Photos by Kelli Rothwell
Words by Sean Skibb

There are nights where you can walk the streets of Vancouver, and get a sense that someone is in town. It’s the kind of feeling you get when a big event is happening—when you see a sea of Canucks jerseys heading in the same direction, you know it’s game night. When stetsons flood the sidewalks, Shania Twain has arrived. But on Friday night, October 4th, the unmistakable sign of the evening was the Palestinian keffiyeh peppering the streets and side-streets of the Granville Entertainment District. And it was clear that the someone of the night was Saint Levant.

Saint Levant brought an electrifying sense of urgency and connection to Vancouver’s Commodore Ballroom on Friday night, where he delivered a rousing performance that was as much an act of solidarity as it was a musical celebration. With his unique blend of Palestinian, Serbian, French, and Algerian heritage, Saint Levant’s multilingual prowess was on full display as he moved through his catalog, flowing effortlessly between Arabic, French & English, touching on themes of identity, displacement, and love in his emotionally charged tracks. Songs like “Very Few Friends” and “From Gaza, With Love” resonated deeply with the audience, a majority of whom donned Palestinian keffiyehs, and waved Palestinian and Lebanese flags in solidarity, in a powerful statement just days before the anniversary of a year-long genocide in Gaza. Despite the setlist being relatively short—nine songs in total—there was little sense of dissatisfaction. Instead, what unfolded was a shared experience of resilience and community, bound together by Levant‘s raw energy and undeniable stage presence.

Though brief, the set was as much a rallying cry as it was a concert—an urgent reminder of the ongoing struggles faced by the Palestinian people, his own people, delivered with the conviction of an artist who grew up amidst the conflict of the Second Intifada uprising. In the lead up to the poignant “From Gaza, With Love,” Levant invited the crowd into a moment of reflective solidarity, followed immediately by the near deafening chants of a unified crowd, demanding a “Free Palestine”. Closing with “Deira,” the energy in the room never wavered, the atmosphere electric with the strength of those who came not just to hear music, but to express their part in a movement. In a city where music often serves as a temporary escape, Levant’s performance offered something deeper: an experience of collective resilience, a message to a crowd to whom the only perceptible global change has been an addition of another flag to wave in solidarity, a powerful assertion that in the face of immense hardship, hope, strength, and yes, even joy can still be found.

Check out favourite photos of the night of Saint Levant and opener Lina below, or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery!

SAINT LEVANT

LINA

All Photo Credit: Kelli Rothwell