Tragically Hip ‘fans for life’ flock to Victoria
VICTORIA — The Tragically Hip is a Canadian religion, with frontman Gord Downie as the band’s adored messenger.
Fans flocked from all over the country Friday, making the pilgrimage here to see their beloved band one last time.
When it was announced earlier this year that Downie had been diagnosed with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of terminal brain cancer, the country wept.
“It was just a kick in the nuts,” said Jade Robinson, 41, a firefighter from Calgary.
Originally from Chemainus, Robinson brought his five-yearold son Aidan to Victoria for a pilgrimage of their own.
Jade had first seen the Hip in 1994 at the old Memorial Arena, and this was to be Aidan’s first concert.
“We’re taking it all in,” Robinson said as they mingled with other fans who were busy buying T-shirts, posters and hockey jerseys emblazoned with Hip insignias (the No. 84 on the jerseys representing the year the band was formed in Kingston, Ont.). “We got here early so he can see everything. We’ll never get the chance to do it again.”
For many others, Friday night’s Man Machine Poem Tour kickoff at Victoria’s Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre won’t be their last show.
En route to Victoria on an early afternoon ferry, the chatter on the decks revolved around the number of times people had seen the Hip, their favourite memories, and what the vibe would be like in the provincial capital.
“I’ve lost count,” said Vancouver’s Adam Johnson, 33, when asked about how many Hip concerts he had seen. Johnson estimated he’s seen the band 35 times.
Friends Colin McGaffin, 46, from Kamloops, and Dan Caterer, 47, from Salmon Arm, came dressed in homemade tour T-shirts.
“Chip’s Hip Trip” read the front of the T-shirts that were splattered with song titles, lyrics and a tour itinerary spanning Victoria to Calgary.
“Hip fans for life,” McGaffin said, adding he hoped to make it to more shows.
McGaffin said he was looking forward to “just being in the building, see them play what they feel like playing and give us this opportunity as Hip fans to see them live again.”
Johnson, McGaffin and Caterer said they had obtained their tickets via official channels, either from the Hip fan club or through the American Express pre-sale.
Others relied on the resale market.
“We spent a couple hundred dollars per ticket on StubHub,” said Vancouver’s Barry Edmondson, 41, from Vancouver.
The Tragically Hip perform in Vancouver on Sunday and Tuesday.