concert review: Spoon at Fillmore 24 September

I've had a crazy couple of days, so here's the review finally.

You know those concerts that inspire you, to write, to pick up that instrument, to live life better?

That was the case on Wednesday night, when Spoon played their third and final night at the Fillmore in San Francisco

Oakland's very own Heavenly States opened with a decent set, I actually liked their recorded songs a bit better. They have a lot of talent, but they need to harness their live energy sound. The lead singer sounded like a Conor Oberst NOT on the verge of sobbing, which was quite lovely. He connected with the audience with jokes that he had allegedly written on his set list. The bass player had more action going on when he played tambourine than with his actual bass. The highlight was probably a tie between the keyboardist/violinist and their cool cover of the Derek and the Dominos song "Bellbottoms", where the band got to showcase their musical talent which was a little lacking in their songwriting. (2.5/5 stars)

As for Spoon, they blew my fucking mind away. I never fully appreciated Spoon before Wednesday night, and now I am determined to listen to all of their songs, all the time. The best thing about the show was the fact that they reinvented their songs for the live show, so it was a very different (but equally good) experience than listening to the record. I appreciated that they played a lot off of their latest Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, which is my favourite Spoon record. I loved Rob's twist on the bass in "Don't Make Me A Target" (the bass throughout the show was orgasmic) and Eric the keyboardist was on fire all night. Britt kept falling to his knees during his solos, and Jim was grinning through the entire show, not usually the facial expression that you find on a drummer. They had such great chemistry with each other and with the horn section, a truly rare find nowadays. The show was quite a treat for fans, the band connected with the audience, and the set list was actually compiled by a Spoon-lover named Ahmad, who had given them a list of his favourite Spoon songs the night before. The band played two encores, including a new song called "Who Backs Your Money".
If Spoon comes to your neck of the woods, CHECK THEM OUT. They are spectacular performers, and it will be the highlight of your month. I'm inspired: I've already started living better and I've written a lot since the concert (they inspired me to finish a paper of Alexander Pope!), but most importantly, I'm gonna get behind the piano again. Thank you, Spoon, for being so passionate and so flipping brilliant.(4.5/5)

for some reason, my computer will not read my SD card. I will post pictures soon.

Spoon - Don't You Evah [mp3]