Hot Hot Heat Gig Zaps All the Energy From Red Bull

Some bands end their sets with pyro or confetti or an amped-up anthem that signals "the grand finale." Hot Hot Heat's invite-only performance at Red Bull's Toronto's headquarters during NXNE last night ended with a blackout. A power outage hit the whole Queen West area and was not restored in time for an encore.

Disappointing and slightly amusing for the people who had gathered for this private set, the Vancouver punk-wave rockers had already given their all for a good half-hour before darkness and silence fell.

The show was a celebration of sorts for Dine Alone Records (Alexisonfire, City and Colour, Arkells), the Toronto independent label which signed the band earlier this year and released Hot Hot Heat's fourth full-length album, 'Future Breeds,' on June 8.

Singer-keyboardist Steve Bays, drummer Paul Hawley, guitarist Luke Paquin and new bassist Louis Hearn played in a sizeable floor-level "stage" area in this modern, impressive office setting, as people downed Red Bull energy drinks and vodka, and ate hefty little sandwiches. Bays, the consummate frontman, even got his afro tousled when he got too close to one girl standing in a slightly elevated area at the side, where she could easily run her fingers through his hair. It was that intimate.

Few bands can say they actually zapped all the energy from Red Bull, but Hot Hot Heat can. Despite the sudden ending, people got their fix and the band is in town all weekend, playing a show Saturday at the Mod Club Theatre, then walking the red carpet at the MuchMusic Video Awards on Sunday. That's as much HHH as Toronto will get right now compared to the small, weekly club residencies the band performed in New York in the month of May at Public Assembly and in Los Angeles in June at Bootleg Theater.