On a cold Halloween night when many people were putting the finishing touches on their costumes, Tegan and Sara were getting ready to play at the Lobero Theater. The Canadian twins were very enthusiastic about the Santa Barbara crowd, which included some costumed fans.

The show kicked off with opening band Northern State, whose songs sounded the most like the Beastie Boys in female form, which is to be expected, given that one of their producers was the Boys’ very own Adrock. The band’s stage performance was impeccable, and the band members’ costumes – various characters from “Grey’s Anatomy”- weren’t bad either.

Between songs, the ladies made sarcastic comments about “Grey’s Anatomy,” including “I slept with Derek, and now my world is upside down.” The band’s performance between the banter was so good that it got the audience to stand up, even though the Lobero is a seated venue. And, after the ushers asked the audience to sit back down, one of the band members asked if this “was the same town that ‘Footloose’ was filmed in.”

Although Northern State’s performance was good, it wasn’t until Tegan and Sara took the stage that the audience really went wild.

With that said, the Lobero Theater is probably not the best venue for a rock concert. With seats set for a more mellow genre of stage show, and the usher’s estimated age averaging 70, the venue was clearly not equipped to handle the rush of audience members that swarmed the stage during the duo’s set. After the first song, the ushers gave up trying to get people back to their seats altogether.

Playing a number of songs from a variety of albums, Tegan and Sara refused to be phased by the frenzied audience, and indeed seemed grateful and gracious in the face of all that attention. Both Tegan and Sara had something nice to say after every applause, which could be because they are Canadian and just overly friendly, or it could be that they are just really happy to be doing what they are doing.

Between songs, both Tegan and Sara went into stories about their lives and experiences, including Sara’s fond memories of junior high.

“When we were in grade seven, we realized that we were geeks because we didn’t have older brothers to explain about hand jobs and cigarettes,” Sara said. “I thought I was cool because I went to Disneyworld.” Showing up to their first day of grade seven in Disney World sweatshirts, Sara said, “We were fucked.”

Tegan also told a story about the twins’ previous experience in Santa Barbara, during which girls in the front were talking to each other. Tegan called them on it and sarcastically quipped, “Oh, you were telling it in your own language.”

Ultimately, although the venue was not suited for their particular type of music, Tegan and Sara made the most of it and entertained the 600 plus people that were in attendance. On a chilly Halloween night, what more could you ask for from the talented Canadian twins?