Spoon’s Surprise Tour Kickoff Show in Austin

Last night felt quintessentially Austin. Last night Spoon played their first show in two years–a surprise event announced a few hours before set time and held at Hotel Vegas, a small club that accommodates only around 200 people. Around the time I moved to this city, Spoon had just released Girls Can Tell and would soon find greater commercial success with their breakthrough album Kill The Moonlight. I had heard a little about the band in 2001, but when Kill the Moonlight dropped, they were unavoidably everywhere. The album cover still feels iconic to me as one piece of art that was plastered everywhere just at the time that I was evolving from a kid who loved music to a person deeply dedicated to and entrenched in independent label music and local bands.

If you lived in Austin at the time, all of this might resonate with you. I’ve had the opportunity to see Spoon at all stages of their rise to indie rock sainthood–at the old Emo’s, at La Zona Rosa, at The Backyard, at festivals. I caught a few Britt Daniel solo sets at small clubs including a weird one at Red Eyed Fly one SXSW. Last night’s show was just as good as any time I’ve seen the band. The excitement of the last minute announcement, fans showing up early to wait in line, a room that only holds about 200 people tops–these elements contributed to a palpable excitement that defined the evening.

After hanging around for the better part of two hours, Spoon took the stage and kicked their set off with “Don’t You Evah” from Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga. Next, the band launched into Kill the Moonlight‘s opening track “Small Stakes,” the crowd erupted into applause. The band avoided playing any songs from their upcoming record, instead sampling the classics from across their discography. While I disagreed with the band’s decision to play “You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb” over Girls Can Tell‘s “Fitted Shirt,” which was listed as an alternate, the night did hold in store a few older numbers such as “Utilitarian” from 1998’s A Series of Sneaks and crowd-pleaser “The Way We Get By.” As good as the evening was, I’m not sure how the band left “Anything You Want” off the setlist, considering the hometown crowd and the song’s geographically relevant final line. No Spoon song transports me back to earlier versions of myself like “Anything You Want,” and it was sorely missed. Hard-hitting rock tracks “The Beast and Dragon, Adored,” “My Mathematical Mind,” and “Jonathan Fisk” were set highlights in a set that carried propulsive energy for its duration.

Spoon has always excelled at creating lean, no-frills indie rock; there’s something essential about them. Although the claim may run up against some dispute, I still see them as a prototype and forerunner to a slew bands that would take Spoon’s formula and find widespread acclaim–bands like Interpol, The Walkmen, and The Strokes. There was a time around 2003 where I listened to Spoon obsessively almost dedicatedly; I listened to them enough to turn them into my younger brother’s all-time favorite band. Last night, I felt proud to live in Austin, a city that gave rise to this band.

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