Minneapolis is special. I've always known this deep down in my heart-of-hearts, but when the band that was literally once named "top overall artist of the decade" decides to play two back-to-back shows in our dear city, one on the 40th anniversary of First Avenue, we've really got something to smile about. Best yet, I was lucky enough to have snagged a pair of tickets to see Spoon in their 21+ performance at First Ave last night (tonight's gig is 18+, also sold out, sorry folks!).
All I can say is "WOW." Spoon is a truly fantastic group. I've had an ongoing love affair with their music for many years, but there is really nothing to rekindle your devotion to a band's sound like seeing them live, hoping they play the songs you love, and screaming for them to come back for more once they have finally left the stage. I had to laugh because the girl standing near me at the show kept saying, dumbfounded over the music, "I can't believe it, they sound just like their recordings!" I wanted to tell her that unless a band sounds just as good as their album or better, they really aren't worth seeing, but I decided against it, figuring by her look of sheer delight, she already knew that she'd spent her money well, and so had I.
Despite running into the abysmal traffic situation that was the downtown area on the first night the Twins played at the new Target Field (cue me cursing loudly when we turned onto 1st Ave and right into traffic cops and road blockades), we managed to get to First Ave early enough to get a good spot in line. In another fortuitous turn of events, I also managed to snag a spot right up against the stage due to the people in front of me in line's inability to prioritize (standing spot first, then hit the bar) and I got to ogle Britt Daniel from two feet away and catch a glimpse of the set list at his feet (a set list that I later got to take home!)
It was an incredibly fulfilling show - the way concerts should be. The band's energy was high, the audience was involved but not invasive to the music, and between the show and the two encores of three songs each the band ended up playing (yeah, I screamed long and hard for those, even as others were giving up, damn straight) all of my favorite Spoon songs, even some of the more obscure, were played at peak performance. The sound was great, whoever did their lighting design was a genius, and Spoon held true to their tradition of creating a wholistic album by creating a nicely-planned concert in songs they chose to play, which spanned their entire career but seemed to all fit together perfectly. My personal favorite performance was "The Ghost of You Lingers" which had an almost eighties-esque Annie Lennox vibe that never would have come across on a recording, and it sounded great.
If any of you were at the show, give me a shout out, and for those of you who weren't, watch for another chance to see Spoon live, I promise it'll be worth it.
Britt, after it got too hot to wear leather anymore
More Britt, as I was right in front of him, it was
hard to get a good shot of many of the other band members!
The setlist, main show on the left,
with encore options upside-down on the right.
-K
