Wow, what a fucking show.
I went in excited, cos I do really like Pavement (although my knowledge extends only to Crooked Rain and Quarantine the Past) but it was another gig that blew my expectations out of the water.
Some other bits first... got stinged on parking, $16.52. The Palais Theatre is also in St Kilda, so completely on the other side of town for me, although I don't mind driving. It is a
beautiful venue, but it is truely a theatre, meaning it's all seated. I was on the upper level and pretty immediately wished I'd gotten a ticket on the floor level right up close. Not sure how other people feel, whether you're younger or older (or perhaps not able-bodied), but I fucking haaaaaate sitting at gigs. (There's only one gig I've been to in my entire life that I was happy to sit for and that was Tim Hecker, who played in a small bar near my place, and he just played like four drone notes for an hour. It was at an all-standing venue, and everyone ended up sitting on the floor.) I'd have loved to stand in my seat the whole time but I only feel comfortable doing that at gigs where heaps of people stand up (it happened at Phoebe Bridgers thankfully - about 15 seconds into the first song and most people were standing). I got up at the end of a few songs and cheered and during Gold Soundz and Range Life I had to stand for bits and shred some air guitar. So, that, combined with the fact that I was a fair way back and up from the stage meant I didn't enjoy it as much as I could have if I was done on the floor.
Anyway, onto the amazing gig. I LOVE them now. Like, they've completely elevated themselves to a new level in my eyes. I'd love to hear from people who've seen them, and how they compare on this tour to that reunion tour in 2010 and to their active days. Cos last night, they were fucking incredible. They sounded phenomenal and their collective stage presence is a joy to watch, as I'll get into more below.
I loved how they came out on stage. They opened with a track called Our Singer, not a great song imo, but it started with the main drummer coming out (which I felt certain was a younger black or biracial dude, but all the info I can see suggests it's their longtime drummer Steve West, so don't know what the fuck is wrong with me) first, and then Stephen walks out and waves and starts playing the song. As it builds, the rest of the band come out during the song, waving and smiling and hyping up the crowd, it was really cool. It was one of a number of moments from them where they just felt cool, chill, authentic, low-fi, a bit ramshackle, laid back, I'm not quite sure how to describe it, but it was really cool.
Frontwards was fucking sick, and it's at this juncture that I'll just say how fucking blown away I was with the guitar playing. Like one of the two main reasons I've loved the band since I got Quarantine the Past from Amoeba on my America trip with family in 2010 is because the guitar is just so good (the other being Malkmus' vocals, which are just so unique, again not quite sure how to describe them, but they've got this laidback, warm, tone to them that feel really heartfelt, but then he can also really scream and go to another register without breaking too) and Frontwards is a great example.
Next were a few tracks that I didn't know, all from Wowee Zowee I see, Kennel District was probably my favourite of these. Then came the classic Shady Lane, this was one of a number of moments were the crowd lost their shit during songs, which I really enjoyed, and enjoyed being part of... this is a band that has retired twice, hasn't released new music in nearly a quarter century, and the theatre was absolutely packed, with heaps of people singing lots of the words or cheering wildly when certain songs started up. I love how Stephen and the band really play up the "all we/I want is a shady line" lines, so fun. I adore this song man, so many memorable lanes...
"You're so beautiful to look at when you cry / Freeze, don't move / You've been chosen as an extra in the movie adaptation of the sequel to your life"
"I'm an island of such great complexity"
"Tell, me off / In the hotel lobby right in front of all the bellboys and the over-friendly conceriege"
I particularly love how Malkmus pulls off those two final lines in the verses, the'yre both one line that go way over what feels like an acceptable line and you can hear it and feel it, but it sounds great and it really elevates the song too. Interesting they don't do the J vs S part, not that it matters or is needed, just found it interesting. I'd be interested to know the J vs S backstory if anyone knows.
Stereo was the first song of the night where I was like yeah, this gig is fucking
great. It's one of their 'silly' songs, for lack of a better word, in that it's got some funky shit in it, like the opening line, "you'll just have to wait", the way Malkmus sings the ramrod line sounds so sarcastic, and then the Geddy Lee stuff. The chorus is fucking mega, I was belting it out loud. So cathartic.
I'll take this juncture to talk about Bob Nastanovich. This man is absolute chaos. Didn't know much about him going in, save for that he's a member of the band, but he's absolutely insane. He sits off to the side with a drum kit and some synthesisers, he's got a suitcase of shit of shit behind him, and at any given moment he'll just get up, grab a tambourine and start wandering around the stage belting it. But that's like a quarter of his thing. He does all the weird little ad libs "you'll just have to wait", "I know him, and he does". In between songs, he's often yelling random shit. After one song, "we've got a special ping pong ball giveaway tonight" and starts throwing ping pong balls into the crowd. After another song, "it's time for the soap giveaway" and starts asking who's filthy and throwing them bars of soap. At one point he disappears into the crowd and it takes three or four minutes for him to find his way back onto the stage, after the next song. He also plays a rapper's hype man role during a few songs, taking the mic and wandering around repeating the end of lines under Stephen, and at other times taking the lead and screaming as if he's at a metal gig, like on Stereo, Embassy Row, Two States and Unfair.
Overall, their stage presence is amazing. Spiral Stairs (again, a backstory I'd like to know about) is also really engaged with the crowd, sings a few of the songs, and is so good on guitar. Scott West also does a fair bit of chat, as does Stephen, and they're always wandering around, looking like they're having a fucking ball. Stephen's stage presence is terrific, I like that he's off on stage left, he's definitely less extroverted than Stairs and Bob, but he's quite funny and I just really enjoy watching his physicality... plays guitar behind himself sometimes, throws it around, plays some songs on the floor, and seems to really enjoy the moments where Spiral Stairs or Bob are singing... during Painted Soldiers which is a Stairs song he just plays guitar and dance/walks in patterns around the stage. They've also got a touring member on keys, Rebecca Cole, she was great. Her and the bassist mostly just play music.
Gold Soundz is one of my favourite songs ever and though I loved hearing it, it wasn't one of my favourite performances of the night. Picks up a bit during the instrumental middle eight (is that what that's called?) and I got up and played air guitar but it was probably one of the few tracks of the night that didn't feel as good as the studio version. Still, what a joy to hear those iconic lines, "So drunk / in the August sun / and you're the kinda girl I like..."
Perfume-V was another song I didn't know, was cool, some funny stuff from Bob with the background vocals.
Then came Grounded, another of my favourite songs of all time, it has surely got to be up there with the very best alt rock (are they alt rock, indie rock or lo-fi?) songs ever written. That riff is absolute fucking magic, and Malkmus' vocals and lyrics just make me melt. I couldn't quite tell if it was Stephen or Stairs playing the mega guitar riffs, either way, Malkmus was throwing himself around and it was magic to watch. I sorely wish I'd been closer in because I wanted to get the feeling of being swallowed up by the guitar, so from my vantage point I didn't lose myself in the song as much as I wished I had, but if anything it's given me even more love for the song. The final crescendo is otherworldly.
Embassy Row is another one of those heavier rockers that was fucking heaps of fun, Bob really sent it during this one. Two States was fun as hell, and I really enjoy the levity of their pro-NoCal songs. Hadn't heard Major Leagues before, thought it was a great song. Unfair ruled, and then they launched into Range Life, such a great song and it translated well live. And so much fun hearing the Smashing Pumpkins/Stone Temple Pilots verse live. Amazing. The crowd screaming during "don't worry / we're in no hurry". Stop Breathin' came next, the second half of that was fucking aaaaaaawesome. So loud and heavy. The setlist says they played their biggest hit, Harness Your Hopes, next. They playing Starlings of the Slipstream around here, I enjoyed it.
The penultimate song before the encore was perhaps my favourite part of the night. Setlist says it was Type Slowly, it went for about 10 minutes and the musicianship on show during an extended instrumental break was phenomenal. The guitaring, the drumming, it was absolute magic. Love to know if this is a common thing and if it was indeed Type Slowly.
Summer Babe closed the main set, it was so warmly received and so well played, great song. They got a very long round of claps and cheers before they came out for the encore. They fucked around for a bit and Stephen started hanging shit on Foo Fighters, singing a few lines of some of their songs, including Everlong, a cappella, and was like "his lyrics are worse than mine", which got the crowd laughing. Spit on a Stranger was good, then a Spiral Stairs song, during which Malkmus did that dance/walk around the stage, so cool to see. "Time to cry", one of them announced as they launched into the beautiful Here.
By this point, it had been a 10/10 show and I was like, how are they gonna end this, and then as they started Cut Your Hair the crowd just went fucking nuts and they all looked like they were having such a good song. And I stood up and shredded air guitar to high heaven during that solo/middle eight part/whatever it's called. Such a joyous moment, actually this was my favourite part of the night. They then closed with a cover, the setlist says, I found the original and it sounds nothing like what they played although I recognised the line "makes me glad that I'm not dead".
And then that was it. They slowly left stage, so appreciative of the crowd, Malkmus and Stairs spending a fair bit of time thanking the front-left pocket of fans, Scott West taking a pic of the crowd. A fucking fantastic show, and I blasted Crooked Rain all the way home. The only thing setlist-wise that could have made the show better for me would have been Box Elder and Fillmore Jive, sadly they didn't play either. I would absolutely go and see them again if they were playing another Melbourne show, sadly they aren't. They seem to really change up their setlists, both songs played and order, from show to show, too. I feel very grateful to have seen them, and I hope I get another chance in the future.
