Review | HVOB Montreal Debut - Her Voice Over Boys

If you live in the northern hemisphere, February can be a long and depressing month. Thankfully, Montreal has amazing promoters putting together the best parties to warm all of us up. Last Saturday, Courage and the Phi Centre, in collaboration with FrontRite and Husa Sounds, brought us the best winter remedy any of us could’ve hoped for: HVOB LIVE (Her Voice Over Boys).

After discovering the electro duo trough their Boiler Room Vienna live set, I was instantly hooked and started following them in hopes of seeing Canadian dates added to their tour. Luckily, my wish was granted when I first saw the HVOB Canadian debut event. Within seconds, the crew was notified and the tickets were purchased, this was going to be a great night.

Located in the old port, the Phi Centre was the perfect venue to host the night. The soundproofed room was spacious with its two mezzanines, yet still felt intimate enough for the live performance.

The evening began with the terrific performance from the Tunisian-Canadian duo UNDERHER. As the opening act, Kalden Bess & Jessica Abruzzese without a doubt lived up to their purpose, warming up the crowd with a raw, dark, intense and sexual sound. By the time they finished their live performance at around 11pm, you could feel the energy in the room and the audience’s excitement. The duo definitely took me by surprise, and can now count me as one of their numerous fans.

Now was finally the time for the main event: HVOB LIVE!

As the crowd started cheering to the first notes, Paul Wallner & Anna Müller took their respective place on the stage and began their performance. Everybody inside started moving to the rhythm of the music, with Anna behind keys delivering divine vocals. Shortly after, the duo’s drummer joined them and the three musicians continued transporting us through their great musical journey. The drums, the vocals, the keys and light show all came together and brought the crowd higher with every song. The emotion and the melodic sound transported each and every one of us; you could feel the harmony in the room. Personally, I was pleased to hear the favorites from their two first albums: Always like this, Window, Dogs, Azrael, Tender Skin, etc…

With a sold out crowd, both acts undeniably lived up to the hype that had surrounded the night. The show, the sound, the venue, the people, everything came together to create the most magical evening.

The set reached its end after an hour fifteen of beautiful electrifying music, when Anna took the microphone and spoke a few words. She thanked everyone for coming to their first Montreal show before they exited the stage. Emotion continued guiding the evening’s mood and the band came back for a few songs as the crowd cheered: “Encore, encore…”