A little laryngitis didn’t hold Tegan and Sara back from putting on one hell of a show at The Majestic Theatre in Detroit.
The iconic Canadian pop duo had canceled their highly anticipated stop in Toronto just a few days prior. Thankfully, Tegan’s voice had recovered enough for them to give fans in the Motor City a memorable performance this past week.
Detroit was just the fifth stop on Tegan and Sara’s latest tour in support of Crybaby, their tenth studio album released this past October. Sara started the show by informing the crowd the night would be a bit different than what they originally planned. The indie pop rockers mixed up their setlist, swapping in some songs that wouldn’t strain the vocals as much, and Tegan joked that she didn’t mind playing a bit more guitar while letting Sara take lead on a few more songs. Tegan’s slightly scratchy voice couldn’t put a damper on everyone’s good time. If anything, the crowd appreciated that these sorts of changes often make a concert stand out even more.
The first song out of the gate was “I Can’t Grow Up” from their latest album. The bouncy tempo and catchy melody were enough to make everyone forget about any lingering voice issues. Shortly after, the crowd was introduced to another new track, “F**king Up What Matters.” It features heartbreaking lyrics like “I’m not trying to destroy us, I just hate what we’ve become” and “I treat you like a cigarette, such a bad habit” that combine with a dancey, fast-paced beat to create an irresistibly fun dichotomy.
From there, the night just kept getting better. The Calgary-born pair reached into their vault with a stretch of acoustic songs starting with “Monday, Monday, Monday” dating back to their 2002 album If It Was You. With the crowd singing along, Tegan was given further respite on vocals. Also included in the set was the classic “Walking With a Ghost.” Sara offered up a cool nugget of music history when she noted Meg White was on hand for their Detroit show back in the day and met the pair backstage after the show where she played The White Stripes’ cover version of the song for them.
Given the circumstances and needing to save Tegan’s voice for the rest of the tour, it was understandable that Tegan and Sara held off on doing an encore. Instead, they closed with “Yellow,” another heartfelt song from their most recent album. That was followed by their biggest commercial hit, “Closer,” with the entire crowd more than happy to help the band hit those high notes.
Tegan and Sara now make their way west for the rest of their tour, which closes out in Vancouver toward the end of this month. For those who aren’t able to catch a show, fans can learn more about the twin sisters through the TV series, High School. The adaptation of their memoir covers their lives growing up as queer teenagers in Calgary is out now on Amazon.
