Steven Page performs at City Winery on Sept. 20, 2018. (Photo by Ari Strauss)

Fresh on the heels of his induction into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame with former bandmates Barenaked Ladies, Steven Page assembled the Steven Page Trio for a riveting performance at City Winery in Washington DC recently.

The show kicks off the trio’s U.S. tour to support Steven’s fifth solo album, Discipline: Heal Thyself, Pt. II, which was released on Sept. 14, 2018 via Fresh Baked Goods/Warner Music Canada.

Listen to Discipline: Heal Thyself, Pt. II by Steven Page on Spotify.

Backed by Craig Northey on electric guitars and Kevin Fox on cello, Steven sang selections from his new solo album, along with several hits from his days with the Barenaked Ladies — the popular band he co-founded and fronted. Percussionist Liam McKinnon McGinnis (apologies, Liam! -editor) joined the trio on several numbers to play the cajon box drum.

While Steven played his Guild sunburst acoustic guitar for most of the 17-song set, he began the show at piano for a solo performance of “There’s a Melody.” He later put down the guitar to deliver an entrancing a cappella version of “Break Your Heart” as he strolled around the stage without a microphone, the power of his voice sufficient to fill the performance space.

Included in the setlist was “White Noise,” a single from Steven’s most recent album and a vitriolic look at the trend of political discourse over the last couple of years. “I grew up in a household where social justice was a fundamental value, and I always believed that it was a fundamental Canadian value as well as a central Jewish one,” Steven said when the single was released. “I’ve watched how the term has been twisted and perverted by the Right over the last several years in an effort to diminish the voices of reason… [this song] was written in the wake of last year’s events in Charlottesville. The open displays of racism and antisemitism, and the chants of ‘Jews Will Not Replace Us,’ made me grab my guitar and tell them I’d be more than glad to replace them.”

Watch the official music video video for “White Noise” by Steven Page on YouTube:

Setlist: There’s a Melody
Jane
Manchild
New Shore
White Noise
Live With It
War on Drugs
Linda Ronstadt in the 70s
Enid
Break Your Heart
Gravity
I can See My House
Good Bog
Old Apartment
Brian Wilson

Encore:
All Been Done
Call & Answer

Check out some photos of The Steven Page Trio performance at City Winery on Sept. 20, 2018. All images copyright and courtesy of Ari Strauss.