Train – Casino Rama, Orillia – October 24, 2015

Review by: Vickie Young
Photos by Andrew Hartl

www.casinorama.com

You know you’re in for a fun show when the curtain call is the sound of a locomotive filling the air. With the whistles blowing the Grammy Award winning super group known as Train assembled on stage, bringing the steam and tracks to a sold-out show at Casino Rama this past Saturday night.

Pat Monahan led the crowd through some interesting twists and turns from the sultry and Spanish soaked tune “50 Ways to Say Good-bye,” declaring: ‘isn’t this romantic?’ to the beloved song that started it all “Meet Virginia”. Throughout the ride Monahan continually inspired the crowd to participate and inflated their smiles even more by posing for selfies during the entirety of “If it’s Love.” The crowd interaction didn’t end there. Monahan cruised up and down the aisles on “Bruises” and offered up the mic several times for fans to strut their stuff.

The real magic of Train lies within their power ballads, the ones that invoke those wonderful goose bumps we can’t get enough of. Many of these were shared with the exceptionally polished band complete with two backup singers.  Among the line-up of favourites were “Calling all Angels” and “Marry Me”, but none quite as poignant as the a’cappella performance of “When I Look to the Sky.” Monahan took it to another level with a highly engaged moment of sheer vulnerability. The delicate dance in which his vocals reach and dominate a room feels like a wonder wall of power and purity.

If rock n’ roll is your thing, well, they were dishing that up too. A blazing cover of Led Zeppelin’s “Ramble On” surely shook some slot machines loose and cemented the band’s versatility and range.

Train wasn’t going to end the night without performing their epic hit “Drops of Jupiter.” It doesn’t matter how many times you have heard this song, it remains as delicious as always – a true testament to Train’s expertise in keeping it fresh.

The band has artfully perfected the ability to appeal to the masses. A dynamic catalogue of cross genre music has opened up their fan base and translated to a show that can be enjoyed by all.  This show was great example of this, with a set list that had just a little something for everyone.

Artwork for ‘Nihilism Part 1’ by Aitor Etxebarria

Train