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By JJ Brewis

Three for one sales are few and far between, and often a mixed bag. This was by far the case for Friday night's Vivian Girls performance at The Biltmore Cabaret. This evening, much like Vancouver's Opening Ceremonies for the 2010 Olympics which happened to occur just hours before this performance, was a mixed bag of sorts: opening bands outshone the headliners, and the show starter was a giant disappointment.

Up first were Vancouver three-piece and recent buzz band Cosmetics, a wretched cross section of 80s synth and self-important lo-fi. The pretentious sound coming off the stage came on far too strong, with the lead singer speak-singing her way through half a dozen songs that all sounded exactly like the last. The song’s second track, “Black Leather Gloves” was a good indicator that the vapid, heartless tracks were not indicative of someone who should be opening for the other great acts of the night. To quote the man standing next to me in the crowd, to his friend, “I hope our band’s not that bad.” Despite the fact that the group had an impressibly polished image set for European fashion magazines, the tracks didn’t match up. The easy, over-simplified drum beats, spoken lyrics, and one-two synth tracks were underwhelming, at best.

Up next was a not surprisingly hugely impressive set by Californian surf-meets-garage rock and critical darling Best Coast. Lead vocalist Bethany Cosentino, accompanied by a very metal looking guitarist and drummer Ali Koehler (on double duty, as she’s one of the Vivian Girls) put together a very rousing, albeit too-short opening set, kicked off by the wonderfully heartfelt “When I’m With You.” Bethany, outfitted in a long floral frock with a bluegrass leather vest overtop, was one of the most endearing vocalists I’ve witnessed in recent memory. In between murmuring repeats of the refrain "I hate sleeping alone," she had the crowd hooked, and I was first in line being sold. This act, despite relatively new to the circuit, have already overgrown this size of venue, so it was a treat to see them in such an intimate setting. The constant sing-along “ooh-wee-ooh” refrains of these tracks had the audience bouncing off the walls, and almost had me forget that they weren’t headlining this show. Halfway through their set, after the mid-tempo poppy (and heavy on the overwrought lyric "I Thought Of Youuuuu") “Sun Was High (So Was I)”, Bethany called out the crowd for their rough housing beaviour, exclaiming “That’s a funny ass song to fight to! It’s about loving people and telling them that you do.” This comment was pretty adequate and delivered to the idiots near the stage who were up in arms over God knows what. These determinedly defeated songs of heartbreak were great to witness live. As Bethany proclaimed herself, “This next one’s a love song. Well, they’re all f---ing love songs.” This sentiment was only further enhanced by the group's cover of Lesley Gore's "That's The Way Boys Are."

The last act of the night, Vivian Girls, were the ones that drew the crowd in the first place, and for good reason. Despite the fact that they didn’t hit the stage until after midnight, they put on a great performance. Kick starting their set with the up-tempo "Never See Me Again," one of the best tracks off their 2008 self-titled debut. Their set was a great mixture of tunes off that album as well as their sophomore release, last year's similar-but-slightly-edgier Everything Goes Wrong. The set climaxed about three quarters through with the nearly-dance track "Lake House." The crowd bustled and sashayed hardest in this moment, but never quite matched the energy reached during Best Coast's set: This may or may not have been influenced by the Girls' stage arrival time. The group's single "Tell The World" also resonated with the Biltmore goers, with its edgier and shredding guitar drilling the sound right off the walls and back again. In summation, the set was a good one, but I wasn't as floored as the second act of the evening. That is not to say anything against, the Vivian Girls, who do deliver the rock out moments in full force, always looking fully committed to their performance.

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