By the end of CMW 2012 Day 5, the members of The iM – like so many others of the music media persuasion – were completely and entirely drained. Thankfully, we got to close out the festival with one of our favourites: Toronto pop-rock quintet PAPERMAPS.

And we’re not just saying that as though Dean would stop writing his column (which is lovely… and you can probably see in all its glorious majesty to the right —>) if we didn’t…

You wouldn’t do that Dean, would you? o___o

We’ve been following PAPERMAPS since their days as EX-PO back in 2010, and since then we’ve seen them release a solid debut LP, expand their band roster, tighten their live show (with a short stint as a DEVO clone around late Oct.2011), and ultimately become one of our go-to live performances to catch around the city.

The energy in Rancho Relaxo on this night in particular – both on-stage and off – was apparent right out of the gate with the extended instrumental intro on PAPERMAPS’ opening song. It quickly invigorated the room with a renewed sense of purpose: we all knew the festival was over (and we could soon be in bed… thank gawd), but we were going to close that venue with a bang…

…and PAPERMAPS knew it.

You could hear it in Dean Marino’s voice when upon the close of their opening number he yelled into the microphone: “Hi we’re PAPERMAPS, and we’re the last band of this mother-fucking festival.”

Their set was a mix of new tracks and songs off their self-titled debut LP: filled with ballads, extended instrumental breakdowns, balls-to-the-wall rock out sessions, and full-on audience participation singalongs (with a large portion of the audience physically joining the band on stage) – ultimately making for a solid clincher to the night, and the festival as a whole.

I couldn’t think of a better way to end Canadian Music Week 2012 in the slightest…

- Photos by LIZ GARERI