LIVE: THE WAR ON DRUGS with SPOON and INDIGO SPARKE, Perth – 11 December 2023

LIVE: THE WAR ON DRUGS with SPOON and INDIGO SPARKE, Perth – 11 December 2023
Reviewed by Harvey Rae

I sometimes wonder what The Boss would think about The War on Drugs. Would the greatest ever heartland rocker question whether the truly great songs and lyrics are quite there? Or would he appreciate that frontman Adam Granduciel can write a Tunnel of Love song better than even some of his own?

Because the brilliant disguise this band can’t hide is the mood they conjure. It’s a vibe. A mood. There’s not much better music to zone out blissfully to, whether you’re taking a country drive, doing chores at home, or indulging in one of their epic stadium shows.

This show had the added spice of Spoon in the support slot. Their thing is making excellent albums; there’s not many acts that make a better favourite band than the Austin, Texas five-piece, such is the consistency of their 10-record discography. There were clearly plenty of people there for them too, whether just as much, or if not more. Yours truly included.

After all, Spoon were frequent visitors for many years, but this was their first visit since 2015. In that time it’s clear multi-instrumentalist Alex Fischel has truly stepped up, and Spoon have released two more excellent records (it was a surprise that not even the hardest cuts from 2017’s Hot Thoughts made the setlist). But more about them soon.

Things got off to a shaky start when the out-of-place MC awkwardly “congratulated” the Welcome to Country; his brief appearances sounded like a commercial radio announcer trying to speak to an indie rock crowd and he was shown about that level of appreciation.

Fortunately, opening act Indigo Sparke wowed in what we think was her first Perth appearance. You knew she was cool because her first two albums have been produced by, respectively, Adrianne Lenker of Big Thief and Aaron Dessner of The National. What we didn’t know was that she rocked live, and just how effortlessly cool she is. While her guitarist threatened to steal the show with some expressionistic playing, Sparke showed genuine poise, only stopping to thank Dessner for her latest album and welcome us to one of the best nights of indie rock for the year.

Spoon were in awesome form from the get-go. Knowing full well they were playing to someone else’s crowd, the hits came think and fast. The Beast and Dragon, Adored was a dream opener while Don’t You Evah and Wild left room for Fischel to show us his chops (on what might have been an upside-down, lefthanded Fender Jaguar, played righthanded? We’re not sure).

Whether he was hitting the synths on The Underdog and Inside Out, or playing piano on a simply awesome cover of John Lennon’s Isolation, it’s hard to believe he’s a relative newcomer having only joined the veteran band in 2013.

Meanwhile Britt Daniel was as cool as evah, completely owning I Turn My Camera On and Rent I Pay. Plus he was a gentleman, welcoming old mate Wendel Stivers on stage for a couple of oldies including classic The Fitted Shirt from 2001’s Girls Can Tell.

Coming in you could be forgiven for suggesting Spoon are better known for their records and War on Drugs better loved for their live show (they’re a former Laneway headliner after all). But — controversial call coming — maybe it was the hits or perhaps it was the mix, for this reviewer it was the best show Spoon have ever done in Perth and they won the night.

They rocked, we danced and sang, and the sound was as clear and pure as you could hope for from distorted guitars and bubbling synths. Just like their records, but with all the attitude, atmosphere and strut of a concert.

That shouldn’t downplay just how good War on Drugs were up next, though. They properly headlined the night, and their growing wall of sound (accompanied by Jon Natchez’s huge baritone saxophone holding up the bottom end) was a marvel to take in.

Coming in at a totally different pace to Spoon’s charismatic, dance-able grooves, the set built more like a post rock gig. Old Skin was a bit of a nothing opener, but Burning got things building, and was a reminder of just how deep their classic album Lost in the Dream bats. Thankfully the Philadelphia band took more songs from this 2014 high point than any other record (six in total).

Pain was the best of the early tunes, while Strangest Thing and Harmonia’s Dream were quite gargantuan near the mid-point as stakes began to rise. The latter featured some of the night’s best lighting as the Kings Park stage threatened to turn into a UFO and fly off into space. Which made a degree of sense; somehow this spectacle got bigger and better the further you moved back and watched on in awe.

If there was a query it was just how many of their biggest tunes were saved for the night’s crescendo, but that also meant when they hit, the epic synth-laden mid-section for Under the Pressure and gospel singalong to I Don’t Live Here Anymore were spine-tinglingly good.

It all left the epic Thinking of a Place to close one of the most memorable nights out at Kings Park we’ve seen. For its part, the venue was an absolute treat: bottles of wine with cooler bags, an enthusiastic Monday night crowd (damn though Tuesday was killer!), and the all new standing area on the lake was a huge success and hopefully will be used for The National coming up next year too. We reckon The Boss would approve.

Spoon Setlist:

The Beast and Dragon, Adored
Don’t You Evah (The Natural History cover)
Wild
The Hardest Cut
The Underdog
Isolation (John Lennon cover)
Nefarious (with Wendel Stivers)
The Fitted Shirt (with Wendel Stivers)
The Way We Get By
Inside Out
Got Nuffin
I Turn My Camera On
Rent I Pay

War on Drugs Setlist:

Old Skin
Burning
Pain
An Ocean in Between the Waves
I Don’t Wanna Wait
Strangest Thing
Harmonia’s Dream
Red Eyes
Living Proof
Eyes to the Wind
Under the Pressure
In Reverse
I Don’t Live Here Anymore
Thinking of a Place

 

Category: Live Reviews