Spoon

Ok. So I am taking so much time in between posts that they are beginning to seem irrelevant. However, I've seen so many terrific shows over the last few months that I am determined to write about every last one of them, even if it takes me until next April. So here goes.

I saw Spoon at Mercury Lounge back on January 21st at their semi-unannounced show to promote the, at the time, soon to be released new record . Some advanced tickets were sold the day before but a friend tipped me that same day -- he picked it up on Twitter of course -- that they were going to release a number of tickets the night of the show. So I headed down to the Merc and got in line at around 4 (it was well worth the wait) and I managed to sneak a couple of late comers in line with me. They really wreaked the place. I've been a big fan of the band since they jumped to Merge Records back in 2000 and have seen them live a couple of times. Getting the chance to see them in such an intimate space was electrifying. The energy was intense and the performance even more so. Indie rock, if sounding cliched as a label, never sounded more alive and original. Britt Daniel crafts songs that move, groove and sooth you, sometimes all at once. I can't praise this band enough and urge everyone to try to seem them live. The night was made even more special by the fact that Alexander Even of The White Rabbits joined in for a few numbers (Britt produced the new TWR record) and I got to say hello to pop punk impresario Ted Leo who was in the audience.
http://www.brooklynvegan.com/archives/2010/01/spoon_played_me.html

In contrast, but no less entertaining, I also saw Spoon's March 26th show at Radio City Music Hall. The band further fined tuned the lo-res rock off the new record Transference while also tossing in a number of their past rock ready tunes. Though one might think a band of such "quiet" aspirations might not be able to fill such a big room, au contraire mon frere (in fact, the show was sold out.) The room was built to Spoon. The acoustics are tailor-made for a musician, and band, that bounces sound and ideas off every corner of a space whether it be the Mercury Lounge or the Showplace of the Nation. Like the Mercury Lounge show, special guests were in the house; Eleanor Friedberger (The Fiery Furnaces), Dan Boeckner (Handsome Furs) and Alexander Even (White Rabbits) all joined in on the fun.
http://www.myspace.com/spoon