Austin loves Tennis. Evidence: the absolutely packed house of attentive fans at their show this past Tuesday at the Parish. And Tennis loves Austin. Evidence: they were just here for SXSW (second year in a row), playing no less than half a dozen shows, and now they’re back for another date. You’d think we’d be tired of each other, but the adorable couple-centered quartet’s upbeat, lighter-than-air indie-pop is simply addicting.
Those who came out for the show were rewarded, since the band delivered the tightest, and best sounding set we’ve seen from them so far. They played everything the crowd wanted to hear, including album standouts “Origins” and “It All Feels the Same.” Singer and keyboardist Alaina Moore stood unobstructed by instruments or even a microphone stand as she sang “My Better Self,” to the great enjoyment of concert-goers.
Moore herself remarked that they were “flying through the setlist.” “You have no idea,” she continued. Truly, the band’s short but direct, consistent songs are part of the band’s greatest appeal. You won’t catch the band belaboring a song or repeating a riff or section ad infinitum. Tennis keeps things rolling. We were perhaps most pleased to finally hear “Marathon” live again for the first time since their shows more than a year ago at SXSW.
The song is one of the most memorable of last year. Since then the band has taken off exponentially in terms of notoriety, making television appearances and playing sold out shows.
Tennis told us in an interview a couple of months ago that they have already begun the process of writing their third record. Though the band still has a slew of tour dates before rest is in store, we can’t wait to see what these new recordings mean for the band. We just hope they remember how much we love them here, and come back to Austin, Texas to play them soon.
