Damaged Social Scene
June 26, 2025
Ottawa Jazz Pageant, Ottawa, ON
To some, Damaged Social Scene appeared like an odd alternative for a “jazz pageant,” nonetheless, the energetic, playful, and fantastically chaotic ensemble made their June 26 efficiency on the Ottawa Jazz Pageant gave the jazz patrons and indie scene followers an evening they’d always remember!
Beginning with their basic nine-piece lineup consisting of Kevin Drew, Brendan Canning, Andrew Whiteman, Charles Spearin, Justin Peroff, Evan Cranley, Sam Goldberg, David French, and Ariel Engle, they had been quickly joined on stage by fellow Ottawa Jazz Pageant performers, Carn Davidson 9, on horns, and the pleasant Hannah Georgas – bringing the full variety of individuals on stage to 19 at any given second.
Seeing as this was their first efficiency in Ottawa in seven years, the collective didn’t maintain again on the hits and the fan favourites. Opening numbers “KC Unintentional” and “7/4 (Shoreline)” had pageant dancers on their ft.
Further highs from the night time included favourites resembling “Hearth Eye’d Boy”, “Trigger = Time” and the beloved duet, “Anthems for a Seventeen Yr‑Outdated Lady”, which got here after when the band expressed that they needed to give you a further half hour of fabric to fill out their 90 minute set time.
Damaged Social Scene introduced the hits, the enjoyable, and the heat to the Jazz Pageant patrons. The ultimate send-off got here from Drew, who inspired the viewers to “don’t allow them to weaponize empathy and neighborhood” and “take pleasure in your lives” – a becoming message for the grand, loving neighborhood spirit of the Ottawa Jazz Pageant.
