Concerts Reviews
LIVE REVIEW: The Black Keys Turn Rogers Arena Into a Blues Bar on the Peaches ’n Kream Tour
For a band that spent the better part of the 2010s filling arenas with polished radio rock, The Black Keys looked strangely comfortable stripping things back at Rogers Arena on May 31. Similar to when I saw them in 2012 at the Sporthalle in Hamburg, Germany, there were no giant moving stages, no overworked visuals, no desperate attempt to remind people how massive they used to be, and even better, no phones up the whole night as the fans truly immersed themselves in the moment. Instead, the Peaches ’n Kream Tour leaned hard into something looser and dirtier.
Jeremie Albino opened the night with a set that fitted perfectly for this version of The Black Keys. The Toronto blues-rock singer walked onstage without much fuss and immediately filled the arena with a raw, raspy voice. He truly has one of the best voices I have heard in a while. Backed by a tight band that leaned into gritty Southern rock and old-school soul, Albino delivered songs with enough swing and swagger to win over a crowd that was still filing into their seats. Opening arena shows can sometimes feel like background noise while people buy drinks and hunt for merch, but Albino managed to cut through the early-night chatter.
The Black Keys walked onstage to a giant glowing band logo and immediately slammed into “Heavy Soul,” which set the tone for the next hour and a half. Dan Auerbach’s guitar tone sounded enormous all night, the kind of crunch that rattles around your chest before it reaches your ears. Patrick Carney, meanwhile, played with the same blunt-force simplicity that made the band compelling in the first place.
The current touring lineup deserves a lot of credit for why this era of the band feels rejuvenated instead of nostalgic. Guitarist Andy Gabbard added extra muscle without crowding Auerbach, and bassist Eric Deaton locked everything together with a loose, rolling groove that kept the set from becoming too stiff. Keyboardist Jimbo Mathis and percussionist Chris St. Hilaire filled out the sound with touches of soul and psych-rock shimmer that made even familiar songs feel slightly rearranged.
“Tighten Up” slowed into something smokier. “Everlasting Light” became almost dreamlike, with Auerbach stretching the melody instead of sprinting through it. Even “Gold on the Ceiling,” still one of the best arena rock songs they ever wrote, carried more grit than swagger this time around.
A lot of that comes from Peaches!, the band’s new covers-heavy record built around the Hill Country blues music that shaped them as kids in Akron. The influence ran through nearly every corner of the set. Covers like “Have Love Will Travel” and “You Got to Lose” felt central to the entire identity of the tour. The Black Keys have spent years polishing themselves into mainstream rock headliners, but this show worked hardest when they sounded slightly unkempt.
“Weight of Love” was easily one of the night’s strongest moments. Auerbach let his solos wander without overplaying, and for a few minutes Rogers stopped feeling like an arena altogether. The whole room suddenly had the atmosphere of some overheated roadside bar where the amps are too loud and nobody cares.
That feeling carried into “Lo/Hi,” which rolled with a heavy psych-rock pulse. There were moments where the pacing sagged slightly in the middle stretch, particularly when too many slower grooves stacked together, but the band always found a way to snap things back into focus before the energy drifted too far. But when they finally reached the home stretch, they absolutely unloaded.
“Little Black Submarines” still hits with ridiculous force live, especially once the quiet opening gives way to the explosion halfway through. When “Lonely Boy” closed the night, the entire arena was moving.
The biggest surprise of where The Black Keys are right now is that a lot of legacy rock bands hit this stage of their career and coast on muscle memory ; yet, The Black Keys seem to have avoided this trap. They’re clearly aware that the arena-rock peak has cooled off a bit, but instead of fighting that reality, they’ve circled back to the music that made them exciting before the Grammys, before the commercials, before “Lonely Boy” became unavoidable.
Check out our favourite photos of the night below or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery!
Upcoming Tour Dates:
6/3/26 – Edmonton, AB – Rogers Place
6/5/26 – Calgary, AB – Spruce Meadows – ATCO Field
6/6/26 – Calgary, AB – Spruce Meadows – ATCO Field
6/8/26 – Jackson, WY – Snow King Resort
6/9/26 – Ogden, UT – Ogden Amphitheater
6/11/26 – Stateline, NV – Harveys Lake Tahoe
6/12/26 – Las Vegas, NV – Virgin Hotels Las Vegas – The Theater
6/13/26 – Santa Barbara, CA – Santa Barbara Bowl
7/16/26 – Chicago, IL – The Salt Shed – Fairgrounds
7/17/26 – Saint Paul, MN – Minnesota Yacht Club Fest
7/19/26 – Chesterfield, MO – The Factory
7/20/26 – La Vista, NE – The Astro – Outdoor Amphitheater
7/21/26 – Oklahoma City, OK – The Zoo Amphitheatre
7/23/26 – Dallas, TX – Bomb Factory
7/24/26 – Houston, TX – Lawn at White Oak Music Hall
7/25/26 – New Braunfels, TX – Whitewater Amphitheatre
7/28/26 – Clearwater, FL – Coachman Park – The BayCare Sound
7/29/26 – St Augustine, FL – The Saint Augustine Amphitheatre
7/30/26 – North Charleston, SC – Firefly Distillery – Lawn
8/1/26 – Richmond, VA – Allianz Amphitheater at Riverfront
8/2/26 – Pittsburgh, PA – Stage AE
8/4/26 – Newport, KY – MegaCorp Pavilion
8/6/26 – Nashville, TN – The Pinnacle
8/7/26 – Nashville, TN – The Pinnacle
8/28/26 – Paris, FR – Rock En Seine
8/29/26 – Portsmouth, UK – Victorious Festival
8/31/26 – London, UK – Eventim Apollo
9/1/26 – London, UK – Brixton Academy
9/4/26 – Amsterdam, NL – AFAS
9/6/26 – Cologne, DE – Palladium
9/7/26 – Bern, CH – Festhalle
9/9/26 – Munich, DE – Zenith
9/10/26 – Milan, IT – Alcatraz
9/13/26 – Madrid, ES – Movistar Aena
9/15/26 – Istanbul, TR – KüçükÇiftlik Park
10/10/26 – Verona, NY – Turning Stone Resort & Casino
10/11/26 – Portland, ME – Cross Insurance Arena
10/13/26 – Moncton, NB – Avenir Centre
10/14/26 – Halifax, NS – Scotiabank Centre
10/16/26 – Laval, QC – Place Bell
10/17/26 – Ottawa, ON – Canadian Tire Centre
10/18/26 – Windsor, ON – Caesars Windsor
More information here.
THE BLACK KEYS
JEREMY ALBINO
All Photo Credit: Caroline Charruyer
Concerts Reviews
LIVE REVIEW: Rachel Chinouriri Takes Paris by Storm at Sold-Out Headline Debut
Ahead of the release of her sophomore album “I Think I Spoke Too Soon” next October, the rising star Rachel Chinouriri took over Paris last Friday for a sold-out show. After having opened for Sabrina Carpenter’s tour back in 2025, this was the singer’s first-ever headline concert in the capital, to the joy of her long-term and newer fans alike.
The night started with Heidi Curtis, whose appearance could only be described as reminiscent of Stevie Nicks and Florence & the Machine. Heidi’s songs are a nice mix of classic rock and folk. The singer told us she’s a fan of all things folkloric, which we can definitely hear in her song “Siren”, about the dark love story between a siren and a sailor.
She then performed her soon-to-be-released “Summon”. Having never been played acoustic before, the song hadn’t originally been planned as part of the setlist. Nonetheless, its last minute addition was a brilliant decision, as it for sure caught the audience’s attention, getting the loudest cheers of the crowd during and after its performance. Heidi Curtis then played “Lost and Found”, and, despite the crowd not knowing the lyrics, they clapped in rhythm all along. Finally, she closed her set with “Undone” before exiting the stage with flowers and a Polaroid gifted to her by fans, as well as a belated happy birthday chant.
Heidi Curtis was, without a doubt, the perfect choice as an opener, and it’s clear that she gained new fans in Paris.
It was then time for Rachel Chinouriri to perform and, from the moment she stepped on stage, it was clear she belonged under the lights. She immediately captivated everyone’s attention, locking eyes with everyone in the room and waving and smiling to people in the front, the back and the sides of the room alike.
Starting her set with “One Song Away from Crying”, the lead single off her new album, Rachel then performed the unreleased “AAAHHH!!!” whose lyrics were already known by some dedicated fans.
The setlist was a masterful mix of songs from her entire discography, as the singer then performed “My Everything” and “It Is What It Is”, two songs off her debut album, before performing “23:42” from her EP Little House.
Although her latest single, “Make Believe”, was released the day of the concert, her fans had come prepared knowing the full lyrics to sing along and carrying signs in honor of the song.
The mood calmed down a little for an emotional moment with “So My Darling”, during which the crowd raised blue lights as a fan project, before things picked right up with “Can We Talk About Isaac”. Rachel then performed “The Hills” with a French flag signed by fans before playing two unreleased tracks off her next album. Leaning into more of a disco sound than her previous body of work, the entire room was dancing and partying, transforming the pit into a night club.
The night ended with Rachel performing the two most famous songs off her first album, namely “All I Ever Asked” and “Never Need Me”, to the loud singing of the audience. There being no encore clearly left the fans wanting for more, as they kept dancing to the venue’s playlist long after the singer was gone.
Hopefully, Rachel Chinouriri will be back in Paris for a new headline show soon, but in the meantime she will be opening for Gracie Abrams for her US tour.
Words by Manon Pothin
Concerts Reviews
LIVE REVIEW: Weezer Turns Vancouver’s Rogers Arena Into a Backyard Party on “The Gathering” Tour
There was something almost too fitting about Weezer calling this tour The Gathering. At Rogers Arena on September 12, the band brought together multiple generations of fans, three decades of songs, a few long-forgotten favourites and enough ridiculous stage antics to make the whole thing feel less like a standard arena concert and more like a very expensive backyard party.
“All are welcome” is the tour’s tagline, and the crowd made a pretty good case for it. There were longtime fans who grew up with The Blue Album and Pinkerton, younger fans discovering the band through TikTok, and plenty of people somewhere in between. Weezer has somehow become one of those bands that can belong to several generations at once.
The evening started with Silversun Pickups, who wasted little time getting the arena moving. Brian Aubert’s distinctive vocals cut through a set built around the band’s thick guitars and driving rhythms. “Panic Switch” and “Lazy Eye” were obvious highlights, but newer material fit comfortably alongside the classics.
The Shins followed, and their set felt like a completely different kind of nostalgia trip. James Mercer and company sounded remarkably polished, working through songs from across their catalog, including “Caring Is Creepy,” “New Slang,” “Sleeping Lessons” and “Simple Song.” The crowd did plenty of the singing on the bigger songs, turning the arena into something far more intimate than its size would suggest.
Then it was time for Weezer. The stage setup immediately made the arena feel strange in the best possible way. A suburban house sat at the centre of the stage, surrounded by the sort of backyard details that should look ridiculous inside Rogers Arena but somehow worked (this seems to be trend these days with Noah Kahan and J Cole also having houses in their stage production). The whole thing was built for the band’s particular brand of geeky humour and absurdity.
Weezer opened with “Shine Again,” from this year’s Gold Album, before launching into “Surf Wax America.” From there, the set moved all over the band’s history. “Hash Pipe,” “The Good Life,” “Beverly Hills,” “Pork and Beans,” “My Name Is Jonas,” “Undone – The Sweater Song,” “Say It Ain’t So” and “Buddy Holly” were all there, but the set was far more interesting than a greatest-hits parade.
The band pulled out “Keep Fishin’” and “Slob” from Maladroit, with the latter making its first appearance in the set since 2005. “No Other One” returned after several years away, and “Lonely Girl” was another welcome deep cut. For a band with this many hits, Weezer clearly didn’t feel obligated to play it safe.
The Pinkerton portion was another highlight, fitting for the album’s 30th anniversary. Six songs from the record made the set, including “Falling for You,” “Pink Triangle,” “Tired of Sex” and “El Scorcho.” The latter got a Vancouver-specific lyrical tweak, a small touch that made the performance feel like a show rather than a reproduction of an old setlist.
The best part, though, was when the band stopped behaving like a conventional rock band. During the acoustic section, Rivers Cuomo moved to keyboards, Patrick Wilson picked up an acoustic guitar and Brian Bell played clarinet. Cuomo later moved behind the drum kit for “Pork and Beans.”
Silversun Pickups bassist Nikki Monninger returned to the stage for three songs with Cuomo, including “We Might as Well Be Strangers,” “Go Away” and “I Just Threw Out the Love of My Dreams.” The latter two have found a surprising second life with younger listeners thanks to TikTok, giving the show another generational crossover that probably would have seemed absurd a decade ago.
And that is what made The Gathering work. Weezer could have built this tour around nostalgia alone. Instead, the band used nostalgia as the foundation and then kept messing with it.
There were hits. There were deep cuts. There were instrument swaps, guest appearances, jokes and plenty of Cuomo’s familiar antics. Most of all, there was a sense that the band understood exactly what its audience wanted without letting that dictate the entire night.
Weezer may have spent much of its career figuring out where it fits. In Vancouver, it looked pretty comfortable exactly where it was: somewhere between the past, the present and a suburban backyard that somehow ended up inside Rogers Arena. That’s a pretty good gathering.
Head here for The Gathering tour dates and ticket information.
Check out our favourite photos of the night below or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery!
WEEZER
THE SHINS
SILVERSUN PICKUPS
All Photo Credit: Caroline Charruyer