2008 Woodie Awards
Minneapolis brings 'Spill'
Andy Downs
Issue date: 7/2/07 Section: Intermission
Concert Review
Minneapolis' historic First Ave. flooded with fans and the wailing sounds of indie-rock's melodic guitar giants, Built to Spill, Saturday night with local act, Dad in Common as the opening act.
Doors opened at 6 p.m. for the 18 plus show that kicked off the band's U.S. tour, pleasing fans who have suffered through postponements and delays due to an eye injury frontman Doug Martsch suffered late last year and former bandmate, Andy Capps, who died around the same time.
Needless to say, the show was held up on great anticipation from the band and fans alike.
After the Minneapolis six-piece of multi-instrumentalists, Dad in Common played a rousing set with their Tapes 'n' Tapes meets the Decemberists sound and opus of strings. The Boise, Idaho group took the stage to a near sold-out crowd and were greeted by a receptive roar.
Songs like "In the Morning," "Stab" and "The Source" started with pleasing cheers, and the fan-favorite, "Car," was intimately performed solo by Doug Martsch, albeit the harmony provided by the sing-along audience.
The band has always had a crisp, clean sound when performing live with their set of three harmonizing electric guitars, backbone bass and Doug Martsch's Neil Young-esque vocals, and they failed to disappoint once again.
Martsch was humble as ever, sincerely thanking the crowd after every song.
Other song highlights included their usual live songs, "Randy Described Eternity," and the extended, jam version encore of "Velvet Waltz" as well as tracks unfamiliar to their live set like the b-side "Joyride," the first-ever live performance of "Alarmed" and a Brian Eno cover.
Built to Spill's set lasted nearly two hours and was the best of their performances at First Ave. in recent years.
The show was the first leg of their extensive North American tour that continues into the fall.
Minneapolis' historic First Ave. flooded with fans and the wailing sounds of indie-rock's melodic guitar giants, Built to Spill, Saturday night with local act, Dad in Common as the opening act.
Doors opened at 6 p.m. for the 18 plus show that kicked off the band's U.S. tour, pleasing fans who have suffered through postponements and delays due to an eye injury frontman Doug Martsch suffered late last year and former bandmate, Andy Capps, who died around the same time.
Needless to say, the show was held up on great anticipation from the band and fans alike.
After the Minneapolis six-piece of multi-instrumentalists, Dad in Common played a rousing set with their Tapes 'n' Tapes meets the Decemberists sound and opus of strings. The Boise, Idaho group took the stage to a near sold-out crowd and were greeted by a receptive roar.
Songs like "In the Morning," "Stab" and "The Source" started with pleasing cheers, and the fan-favorite, "Car," was intimately performed solo by Doug Martsch, albeit the harmony provided by the sing-along audience.
The band has always had a crisp, clean sound when performing live with their set of three harmonizing electric guitars, backbone bass and Doug Martsch's Neil Young-esque vocals, and they failed to disappoint once again.
Martsch was humble as ever, sincerely thanking the crowd after every song.
Other song highlights included their usual live songs, "Randy Described Eternity," and the extended, jam version encore of "Velvet Waltz" as well as tracks unfamiliar to their live set like the b-side "Joyride," the first-ever live performance of "Alarmed" and a Brian Eno cover.
Built to Spill's set lasted nearly two hours and was the best of their performances at First Ave. in recent years.
The show was the first leg of their extensive North American tour that continues into the fall.