Concerts Reviews
LIVE REVIEW: LP Brings ‘All Is Not Lost’ Tour to Vancouver
On September 5, multi platinum singer-songwriter LP brought the All Is Not Lost Tour to Vancouver’s Queen Elizabeth Theatre, delivering a performance that moved effortlessly between vulnerability, power, and pure rock-and-roll energy. The night also carried a special significance: the tour celebrates the 10th anniversary of Lost on You, the record that helped transform LP from a respected songwriter into a global phenomenon.
Known professionally as LP, Laura Pergolizzi has spent years carving out a space that is uniquely their own. Before becoming internationally recognized as a recording artist, LP established themselves as a songwriter for major artists including Rihanna, Christina Aguilera, and Celine Dion. Their own breakthrough came with “Lost on You,” which went to No. 1 in 18 countries and eventually surpassed one billion Spotify streams.
Inside the Queen Elizabeth Theatre, LP’s music felt much more immediate. Their unmistakable voice moved from restrained and intimate to explosive within moments, giving songs such as “Muddy Waters,” “The One That You Love,” and “Lost on You” a sense of urgency that is difficult to recreate outside of a live setting.
The evening’s setlist reflected both sides of LP’s career. The first part moved through newer material and familiar favourites, including “Shelly,” “Tokyo Sunrise,” “Love Is All I Have,” and “Chasing & Waiting.” Later, the performance shifted toward the Lost on You celebration, bringing some of LP’s most recognizable songs into the spotlight.
It was the kind of moment that makes a concert feel bigger than the room. The song that introduced LP’s voice to millions became a shared experience between artist and audience, with the theatre singing along to every familiar line. After nearly a decade of the song living its own life around the world, hearing it performed in a packed Vancouver theatre gave it a renewed sense of intimacy.
From behind the camera, there was another layer to the experience. Photographing LP meant constantly watching for the moments between the obvious ones. The dramatic poses and powerful vocals naturally create striking frames, but some of the strongest images came from the quieter details, the concentration before a verse, a hand wrapped around the microphone, a fleeting expression beneath the stage lights.
LP is an artist who gives a photographer plenty to work with. Their movement across the stage feels instinctive rather than choreographed, and their performance style carries the same unpredictability as their voice. One moment can feel completely still; the next can explode into movement.
That contrast became one of the defining visual elements of the Vancouver show. The Queen Elizabeth Theatre also suited the performance. Rather than feeling distant or oversized, the venue allowed the audience to remain close to the emotional centre of the show. LP could command the room without having to overwhelm it.
There was also a sense of celebration throughout the night. Ten years after Lost on You, LP is still performing the songs that changed the trajectory of their career while continuing to introduce audiences to what’s next. The tour combines material from the upcoming album with a special presentation of Lost on You in its entirety, making the show feel like both a look backward and a step forward.
That balance is what made the Vancouver performance so compelling. LP isn’t simply revisiting an old record. They are showing how those songs have evolved with them and how they continue to resonate with an audience that has grown alongside their music.
By the final moments of the night, the feeling in the theatre was less like watching an artist celebrate an anniversary and more like witnessing a career still in motion.
For me, photographing LP in Vancouver was an opportunity to capture that evolution in real time: the voice, the movement, the vulnerability, and the electricity that has made LP such a distinctive live performer.
Ten years after Lost on You, the LP still has something to say and judging by the way Vancouver listened, people are still more than willing to hear it.
Check out our favourite photos of the night below or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery!
LP
All Photo Credit: Raphael Arthur
Concerts Reviews
LIVE REVIEW: Icons Deep Purple & Kansas Bring A Legendary Celebratory Night of Surprises To Abbotsford’s Rogers Forum
I don’t say this lightly, but both Deep Purple and Kansas absolutely put on a hell of a show. Since 1968, Deep Purple have basically been the godfathers of live rock performance. Don’t believe me? Go look up their Guinness World Record for “loudest concert,” which they snagged back in 1972. That same energy, that same wall of sound, made the trip across five decades and landed right here for the band’s headlining North American tour stop in Abbotsford. Original drummer Ian Paice is still holding it down, now joined by guitarist Simon McBride, bassist Roger Glover, keyboardist Don Airey, and vocalist Ian Gillan. Sure, only one original member remains, but somehow the whole group still nails the spirit of what made Deep Purple, well, Deep Purple.
They tore through 16 tracks that night. “Smoke on the Water” got the loudest reaction of the evening, no surprise there. “Diablo” and “Perfect Strangers” also landed big, and “Highway Star” kicked the whole thing off on an absolute high. And when I say the crowd was into it, I mean it. Fans who’ve followed this band for almost fifty years were pressed right up against the barrier trying to get as close as possible. That closeness paid off too, with an incredible light show and Simon McBride ripping through solo after solo. Honestly, McBride was the highlight more than once, stepping up so Gillan could catch his breath between songs. Given how much those vocals demand, that rest was more than earned.
Like I said, “Smoke on the Water” was the main event for Abbotsford. It’s one thing to describe it, but actually watching the buildup, seeing the bandmates grinning at each other because they knew exactly what was coming, that was priceless. Then those notes kicked in. You know the ones. Every Guitar Center employee’s nightmare. The whole arena became one voice, singing along to a guitar riff like it was a chorus. It was the moment of the night, the kind of thing every rock fan dreams about experiencing live. That wave of energy carried all the way through to the final song, “Hush.” If you were a millennial who spent way too much time on Guitar Hero 2, hearing this one live gave you full goosebumps. This was the band’s first big hit back in 1968, and in 2026 it still hits just as hard. The crowd treated it like more than an encore. It felt like everyone in that room knew they might not get another chance to see Deep Purple live, and they soaked in every second of it. When the house lights finally came up, Abbotsford just stood there in awe. Deep Purple‘s legendary status was on full display, and nobody in that crowd wanted the night to end.
Check out our favourite photos of the night below or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery!
DEEP PURPLE
KANSAS
All Photo Credit: Marquise Monno
Concerts Reviews
LIVE REVIEW: Weird Al Takes Vancouver on a Wild Ride Through Pop Culture
There’s something pretty remarkable about Weird Al Yankovic: after decades of turning the biggest songs, trends, and pop-culture moments of the day into comedy gold, he somehow remains just as relevant as ever. While plenty of artists from past eras can feel firmly planted in their respective decades, Weird Al has somehow avoided becoming a musical time capsule. Instead, he keeps finding new ways to make each generation laugh, one accordion-fuelled parody at a time. His catalogue has grown alongside pop culture itself, from the hits of the ’80s and ’90s to the internet age and beyond, yet somehow none of it feels particularly dated. If anything, hearing one of his classic parodies today feels like running into an old friend who still knows exactly how to make you laugh. That ability to evolve without losing the wonderfully weird spirit that made him famous in the first place is a pretty impressive feat and a big reason why Weird Al continues to feel less like a nostalgia act and more like a permanent fixture of pop culture.
On September 3rd in Vancouver, at the Freedom Mobile Amphitheatre, it became pretty obvious that Weird Al’s particular brand of musical chaos has officially transcended generations. Kids were dancing along to “Eat It” right alongside parents who probably remember hearing it for the first time back in the ’80s. And somehow, decades later, “Smells Like Nirvana” and “Amish Paradise” still landed with the same wonderfully ridiculous energy. It’s a strange and delightful thing to watch: songs born from the pop culture of another era now being passed down like family heirlooms, only much funnier, and with significantly more accordion.
And that is the magic of Weird Al. He transforms songs into wonderfully bizarre little time capsules that somehow keep finding new audiences. His performances are every bit as committed as the jokes themselves, with elaborate costumes, choreography, visuals, character changes, and an almost suspicious amount of energy. Nothing feels like it is being phoned in. Even after all these years, there’s a genuine sense that he is having just as much fun with the absurdity as everyone watching him.
That commitment is a huge part of what makes a Weird Al show so much more than a collection of parody songs. It’s part concert, part comedy show, part trip down musical memory lane, and part “what on earth is happening right now?” spectacle. One moment you’re happily singing along to a song you haven’t heard in years, and the next you’re watching Weird Al transform into full “White & Nerdy” mode or go completely DEVO with the iconic red dome. The crowd clearly got the memo too, with a sea of wonderfully tacky Hawaiian shirts filling the amphitheatre. It’s silly, nostalgic, wildly entertaining, and impossible not to get swept up in.
Whether you came for the nostalgia, the comedy, the accordion, or simply to see what on earth Weird Al was going to do next, the answer was pretty much the same: have fun, be weird, and enjoy the spectacle. In a world where pop culture moves faster than ever, there’s something genuinely refreshing about an artist who can look backward, poke fun at the things we loved, and still make them feel brand new. Weird Al has spent decades proving that a good joke, a great song, and an accordion never really go out of style.
Check out our favourite photos of the night below or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery!
WEIRD AL
PUDDLES PITY PARTY
All Photo Credit: Heather Horncastle