Yo La Tengo, Roundhouse, 08/11/09

I have finally got round to writing up my recent visit to the Roundhouse to see Yo La Tengo.

I opted for seats as opposed to standing and feared the worst when I realized there was a huge column partially blocking my view of the stage. Euros Childs provided support – not solo as I had imagined but with a small band. His vocals still sound as great as ever, and seeing him behind the keyboards brought back memories of seeing Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci in the late 1990s & early 2000s. He started off with a version of Lady Fair. I haven’t really followed his solo stuff as much as I could have so the remainder of the set was fairly unfamiliar, seeming to be more ‘pop’ and upbeat, although my initial impressions were that it was sadly still some way short of the standard of the music he made with GZM.

Yo La Tengo started off in usual fashion with a long, layered guitar opener before playing tracks from their latest album, the very fine ‘Popular Songs’. A small string section accompanied the band for ‘Here To Fall’ and ‘If It’s True’. ‘Periodically, Double Or Triple’ was completely dismantled and reconstructed with brilliant keyboards and segued straight into ‘Stockholm Syndrome’.

We were treated to a beautiful version of ‘Tears Are In Your Eyes’, before possibly my new favourite from the new album was played – ‘I’m On My Way’, a very pretty little song sung by James. Another new favourite, ‘When It Gets Dark’ also made the set (although the equally brilliant ‘All Your Secrets’ missed out). They closed with ‘The Story Of Yo La Tengo’, probably my favourite of their long, feedback-infused, drone-y album closers (and slightly surprisingly the only song played from last album I’m Not Afraid Of You And Will Beat Your As$).

The encore was very enjoyable – a beautiful, tender, moving, whispered version of ‘Our Way To Fall’ (which firmly lodged itself into my mind for the next few days) and an equally pretty version of George Harrison’s ‘Behind That Locked Door’, Georgia’s vocals being heart-meltingly pretty as always.

The set list went something like this:

My Heart’s Reflection
More Stars Than There Are In Heaven
Avalon Or Someone Very Similar
Periodically, Double Or Triple
(segue)
Stockholm Syndrome
Here To Fall
If It’s True
Tom Courtenay
Tears Are In Your Eyes
I’m On My Way
When It Gets Dark
Autumn Sweater
Nothing To Hide
The Story Of Yo La Tengo

Encore

A very raucous, thrashy cover featuring Georgia on guitar
Our Way To Fall
From Behind That Locked Door