The first time I saw Shellac in 2002, I decided that I would never miss their live show again. Since then I have kept that promise to myself. On Saturday the band played an afternoon show at the Echoplex here in Los Angeles. I could not attend because I had to be at work. Luckily I made it last night, and I was not the slightest bit disappointed.
Arcwelder opened. Bill Graber mentioned that the band had never played Los Angeles before. I was shocked to hear that, considering the band formed over 20 years ago. I was excited to hear “All Mixed Together,” as it’s my favorite song of Xerxes. It was apparently requested by someone from the band’s home state. Thanks, anonymous Arcwelder fan! They are one of those amazing, unheralded bands (see: Tar, Rodan, Mule…) who deserve way more recognition than they receive.
Shellac is a beast. I can’t think of another band I’ve seen multiple times that sounds as tight as they do. In fact, with each tour it seems like they’re pushing the envelope for how tight a band can actually be. Todd’s constant time-shifting rhythms struggle to screw up Bob and Steve, and the duo never falter. The sounds Steve coaxes out of his guitar, the weird harmonics and fucked up tones are completely unnatural and awesome. Other than one clam Bob hit during “The End Of Radio,” it was a stunning and flawless performance.
The setlist was quite good, too (see below). Two new songs were slipped into the set, which will inevitably start rumors that the band is working on a new record (and maybe this one will take less than 7 years to complete!). Highlights included “Squirrel Song,” “Dog And Pony Show” and “The End Of Radio,” which was dragged out for-fucking-ever with banter about the snare drum Todd was smacking as he walked around the stage. Shout outs to Studs Terkel and Vin Scully were added for nerdy measure.
The Q&A, usually one of the best parts of any Shellac show, was pretty weak last night. Someone asked what was on Steve’s shirt, and twice Bob responded that a question was “Fucking stupid,” or “Fucking retarded.” The last time I saw the band, in 2006, someone asked a vague question which elicited a very long and drawn out explanation of how to properly have sex. A few years before that, Ian asked the classic nerd question, “What’s the worst album you’ve ever worked on?” Answer: “The next one.” Last night someone asked where the band eats in LA. Oh Angelinos, when are you going to learn that the food here sucks, and not even the members of Shellac will provide the wisdom which will help you find a good meal in this city?
“Spoke” is the perfect song to conclude a Shellac show, but I miss the days of the extended “Wingwalker” with the drum trio ending. If you’re going to set that crash cymbal up every night you might as well make really good use of it. Like that time at the Knitting Factory when they made that goofy drum pyramid.
It was very warm in the Echoplex last night. After “My Black Ass” I ducked out of my spot near the front of the stage to get some water and walk around the perimeter, and the heat coming off the crowd was unreal. After the second new song I snuck back into my original spot to enjoy the end of the set. It was pretty humid in there. I guess this is to be expected when a band’s core audience is awkward, gawky nerds who get really excited and anxious when their favorite band takes the stage, but last night was just…it was pretty gross. On the bright side, the boy-to-girl ratio of the crowd is actually improving! In 2002, I think it was 20:1. In 2006, It was down to about 10:1, last night — at least from my vantage point — it was probably 6:1. Good job of mainstreaming, Shellac!
Looking at those old photos from 2002 reminds me that I have to relaunch my concert photography page. There’s some good shit mixed in there! Unfortunately, it also reminds me that when I started doing these reviews/photo galleries I was 18 years old. So old. I’ll probably die soon.
Setlist:
Crow
A Minute
Squirrel Song
Paco
Compliant
Copper
My Black Ass
Dude, Incredible
Steady As She Goes
Gary, Indiana
Killers
Dog And Pony Show
The End Of Radio
Prayer To God
Ghosts
Spoke
