I say: “I’ll see you out there. I’ll be down in front.”
Steve Malkmus, sitting backstage before the show, half-smiles and says laconically, like he does, “I’m lookin’ forward to it.”
I say: “You’re not really, are you?”
Steve says: “Yeah, actually, I am!”
And you know what? Steve Malkmus actually enjoyed himself in Vancouver.
There was almost-dancing, shufflin’ around, balancing his guitar on his hand, cradling it high up to his chest (“you never saw Hendrix doing that,” he’d say later, deadpanning) bantering with the crowd, taking a couple of requests, smiling, goofing off and grand, wonderful guitar work.
In fact, if I were a bettin’ woman, I’d lay money down on the fact that not just Malkmus but ALL those reunion-ized 90s-era, 40-somethings were having a good time. One friend even remarked: “You can’t even tell if they actually hate each other.”
Bob Nastanovich (Pavement’s resident MC/second drummer/backup singer/bonkers madman) was as mental and tremendous great fun as I remember him to be in ’94, as he chatted with the crowd and raged through “Unfair”. Mark Ibold grinned and rocked out for most of the show, Steve West bashed away solidly through amazing hair and better glasses while and Scott Kannberg (Captain Low-Key) played dutifully.
This was a far less shambolic, wayyyyy tighter Pavement than I was expecting. And I’m sure all the guys who were out on ManDates last night would have agreed (Thanks for that ManDate line, guy on Twitter).
As for the songs, well, “Silence Kit” opened, “Gold Soundz”, “Range Life” and “Here” closed.
In between was a mush of timetravelling Americana slackrock and some fantastic guitar noodling from Steve, Mark and Spiral on “Stop Breathing” (in fact, the three often tried to outnoodle each other), “Loretta’s Scars”, a fab version of “Starlings of the Slipstream”, a Mint Julep-y “Shady Lane” with Malkmus on playful good form, a slick “Frontwards”, a grinding “In the Mouth a Desert”, a crowd not singing but YELLING along to “Cut Your Hair”, “Box Elder”, “Ikea” and two-hours wrapped up in a thrift-shop sweater of goodness.
My gods, were PAVEMENT ACTUALLY AMAZING? Or was it just nostalgia?
Who cares.
This night, Pavement were just really, really good. Even the girlfriends of the guys out on ManDates who were sorta dragged there as a courtesy and wouldn’t know a Wowee Zowee from Slanted and Enchanted, would agree. I’m laying bets on it.
All Pavement photos by Brittney Kwasney/Bright Photo for backstagerider.com
2 responses to “Gallery/Review: PAVEMENT Live in Vancouver – Actually Amazing”
Sounds like the (phenomenal) show they did on Toronto Island this summer.
I wonder whether this current tendency for ’90s indie rockers to suddenly reveal spectacular live performance chops has anything to do with that slacker apathy and lo-fi attitude that was so fashionable back in the day. Was making it look like you just didn’t care, and/or sounding rough rough rough the way bands demonstrated that they weren’t selling out? Now that “selling out” isn’t something anyone cares about anymore, has that freed bands up to be the tight, passionate, live acts that they always were, or did they really need that extra 15 years of practice? Or maybe my memory is failing in my old age…maybe the slipshod showmanship didn’t apply across the board, but only to select bands…
I don’t even know who this band is but the way you write makes me want to. Thanks M – you r awesome :). Ps and the photos kick ass too