I wasn’t surprised when Spoon’s set for their 4th ACL taping centered on their newest effort They Want My Soul. After all, they’ve recorded many of their old songs during past appearances on the longstanding, revered television series. I can’t say I was disappointed; I am a fan of the new album. But heading into Saturday night, I had high hopes that their set would feature a few more tunes excavated from the dust of of their back catalog. I couldn’t be happier to report that I didn’t find myself disappointed.
After photographing the early songs of the set, I stood at the back of the packed amphitheater at Stubb’s grinning ridiculously, dancing, and pumping my fist as the setlist unfolded. Only eight of the twenty-one songs Spoon played Saturday night came from either of the two newest efforts, They Want My Soul or Transference. The selection of songs featured a pair of cuts from as far back as 2001’s Girls Can Tell: “Everything Hits At Once” and “Anything You Want.” The latter was conspicuously absent from the band’s impromptu tour kick-off show earlier this year. While I hate to expect a band to always play a song, the track’s final lines, “Cause you know you’re the one and that hasn’t changed/ Since you were nineteen and still in school waiting on a light on the corner by Sound Exchange,” feel essentially Austin. Sound Exchange was a beloved record store that once inhabited the northwest corner of Guadalupe and 21st, where you can also find the famous Hi How Are You graffiti. Hearing the lines always gives me chills of joy.
“I Summon You” from Gimme Fiction and “Jonathan Fisk” from Kill the Moonlight were other deep cuts and set highlights from the performance. Energetic and tight, the five-piece rocked through songs without spending much time on stage banter. It’s hard to have a complaint about such a killer set, but it would have been nice to hear just one track from A Series of Sneaks, maybe “30 Gallon Tank” or “Car Radio.” I’ve been watching Spoon almost since I moved to Austin in 2001, and they’ve reached the point of impossibility with regard to pleasing everyone in the crowd. Too many great songs over the span of too many great albums, which isn’t the worst problem to have. It probably needs its own hashtag, #rocklegendsproblems or something. If Spoon keeps putting out great albums, we’ll have to keep suffering through these difficulties, but I’m okay with it. In fact, I couldn’t be prouder of the band.
Like a true class act, Spoon asked local power pop mainstays A Giant Dog to open. The gesture seemed particularly thoughtful, considering that frontwoman Sabrina Ellis’ other band Sweet Spirit played after Spoon at their surprise Hotel Vegas show back in May. Playing afterward meant that not too many of Spoon’s fans stuck around to catch the set, so it was nice to see Ellis and her band, which includes members of OBN IIIs, get that opening act love on Saturday night. A Giant Dog puts on the kind of show you can’t ignore, as Ellis stomps about the stage clad in spandex. If you need a recommendation for a place to start with their music, I’ve always enjoyed “All I Wanted,” the first track from their album Bone.
All photographs © Bryan C. Parker & Pop Press International; all rights reserved. Click any image to open set in slideshow viewer.
