Every seat was filled Thursday night as Behind Sapphire played their first show ever in Merritt.

The sound was great inside Brambles Bakery and the show attracted a diverse cross section of patrons who came out to see this young quartet play.

The mostly acoustic quartet served up an imaginative set that had the audience clamouring for more.

The band started their tour with a stop in Penticton on Wednesday, and was happy to experience a much more lively and appreciative audience here in Merritt.

“Tonight was in my top ten favourite shows ever and we have played about 50 so far,” said Matt Mazankowski, Behind Sapphire guitarist.

The band has recently added a new bass player and hopes to add a violinist, cellist, trumpet and cornet for future shows.

They are planning a cross-country tour starting in June, which will be the first time they have traveled across Canada.

“This is such an awesome venue and Bramble's have been so good and generous to us,” says Mazankowski.

“We will definitely come back and play in the summer.”

Behind Sapphire immediately won over the capacity crowd with a set that was heart-felt, upbeat, and timeless.

Lead singer Grant Cassell had an engaging stage presence as he employed a megaphone and played a child's xylophone, which at no time came across as gimmicky, but added an element of fun and passion to the performance.

“The sound was excellent tonight,” said Cassell.

“We are working on another album all ready which we can't wait to get into the studio to produce.”

The band conveyed a comfort with each other as they jumped between lilting melodies and raucous backbeats, always maintaining an element of originality that was refreshing.

At the end of the show, there was a steady lineup of appreciative audience members waiting to buy CDs, and get them autographed from the obliging band.

“Merritt has a lot of good music going on,” said Markus Guerr, who is visiting Merritt from Germany.
“These guys were really good.”