We Are the City Captivate CMW Crowd With Sparklers and Boyish Charm

Kelowna, B.C., pop rock band We Are the City used their Saturday night Canadian Music Week set at the Garrison to debut new material in Toronto. Playing several songs from their 'High School' EP -- due out March 22 -- they proved that their boyish charm and maturing sound will get them far.

The trio, made up of vocalist and keyboardist Cayne McKenzie, drummer Andrew Huculiak and new guitarist Blake Enemark, charismatically threw themselves all around the stage. What was practically an empty venue only moments before, was nearly full by the time the band was finished.

It was during the chorus of opener 'Get Happy' -- a slower track that blossoms into a jagged head-bobber -- that Enemark somehow threw his guitar strap over his head and momentarily lost control, prompting McKenzie to stall vocally, and crack jokes in between his lyrics. Once Enemark got his strap back, he tried to redeem himself by lighting a sparkler on the end of his guitar's neck, but was unsuccessful despite McKenzie cheering him on.

Once they gave up, the guys moved on to the EP's first single, 'Happy New Year,' and then it was smooth sailing.

After playing a few familiar songs from their 2009 debut 'In a Quiet World,' the band pulled out another new song, 'Dark/Warm Air,' which had Huculiak coming out from behind the drum kit to take over lead vocals. It became a set full of new experiences.

McKenzie told Spinner after their set that he was proud of his bandmates for their accomplishments. When it came to how he felt playing the new songs, he admitted that "it was nerve-wracking but necessary."

"For me, it's better to be nervous than calm, because otherwise I'm not caring as much," he said. "We've never ever had so many new songs to integrate into the set, because this is our second album. It was kind of an experiment; we've been trying out different songs every night, trying to get the best set possible."