People were surprised by it. The Great Lake Swimmers of Toronto had sold out the back stage at Black Cat on a Tuesday night. Personally, I think this is what happened. People woke up on Sunday, checked the forecast for Monday and Tuesday, saw that the weather would absolutely suck, and began mulling over where they would like to huddle while the cold mist blew outside. Some of them ended up here.

The Swimmers have been around for at least six years, with limited commercial success in the States. They’re touring on the back of their recent album, Lost Channels, which is a very solid effort. Back in the spring of 2007, they released Ongiara, which contains a song so unbelievably sexy that it should be in the arsenal of every Lothario on the planet. Go Google “Your Rocky Spine,” if you’re not familiar with it already. The song begins with a syncopated banjo line full of hammers and pulls, which, after a while, marries with a guitar, and then Tony Dekker’s effortlessly beautiful voice. Soon, galloping brushes touch snare and the song is off.