Live Review: Dizzy - The Biltmore Cabaret, Vancouver 03/05/2019

We caught Dizzy when they stopped in at Vancouver’s Biltmore Cabaret on the third date of their headline Canadian tour!

A couple months after winning Alternative Album of the Year for Baby Teeth at the Junos (think Canadian Grammys), Dizzy finally made their way to Vancouver to play a packed show at the intimate Biltmore Cabaret. The alt-pop group, while fairly new, clearly have an already solid fan base, as the entire room were singing and dancing along to every song. Although it wasn’t a heavily danceable set, lead vocalist Katie Munshaw made the stage her own, illuminated by bright spotlights, as well a spinning disco ball.

Munshaw and the band (consisting of brothers Charlie, Alex and Mackenzie Spencer) layer soft and emotional vocals with an overall nostalgic, comforting sound. This translates beautifully to their live show, with no obvious or over-the-top effects added to their sound. What you hear is what you get with this band. Having only released 11 songs, Dizzy’s set was a short one, but their instrumentation draws you in and makes you feel as though you’re wandering through the streets of suburbia at night, making you nostalgic for a feeling of teenage boredom you may or may not have experienced. It makes the set feel hours long in the most beautiful way.

A key component in making this band so full of nostalgic wonder is their easily accessible lyricism as they tell stories of love, heartbreak, and all the emotions you feel while growing up. This accessibility is seen as Munshaw wandered around the stage, pouring her heart into the vocals, while the rest of the band kept a laid-back stage presence, rather than overwhelming the room with the intense energy some musicians exude.

There is a reason that When The Horn Blows have featured Dizzy numerous times. The demand your attention and then fill you with an intense feeling of wanting to be back in high school, wandering around aimlessly. They will be touring select cities throughout Canada, the US, and the UK until mid-June, and if they’re in your area you should definitely take the time to catch them live.

Words and photos by Kelli Anne