After last weekend's Over The Top fest, I thought I'd had enough of Toronto bands, but when I heard the Rural Alberta Advantage were playing Mercury Lounge tonight, it sounded worth a (re)visit. Lead Nils Edenloff basically does everything himself: vocals, acoustic guitar, Casio - leaving his two bandmates to play drums, cymbal, and some kind of toy celesta. Its basically indie-pop, but Edenloff's powerful, slightly-twangy voice elevates the RAA above the everyday. Besides, his awkward banter is familiar ("You guys are amazingly special") and irresistible. 

Norway's I Was a King opened, playing melodic, not particularly interesting indie-pop. (More pics below.)