Since releasing their debut single “Losing My Edge” back in 2002, James Murphy‘s LCD Soundsystem has been merging the worlds of dance music and indie rock in a way that’s as captivating, at least to these ears, as anyone on this side of the Atlantic. Dance music for people who don’t really like dance music, Murphy is an analog freak who makes dance records for older listeners raised on punk, indie rock and classic rock because well, he’s one himself. It’s the self-awareness of his lyrics combined with his liberal borrowing of ideas from Kraftwerk, David Bowie, Brian Eno and Talking Heads (and the vocal stylings of Heaven 17) along with various Ze and 99 Records artists of the early ’80s (think ESG, Liquid Liquid, et al.) that give his music its unique stamp.
With one very good debut album and two consecutive great albums under his belt, I expected a great live show based upon the one previous time we saw him play (a free MySpace-sponsored show at the TLA back in 2007) and sure enough, that’s what we got. All 3 albums were well represented in the hour and a half long setlist and in this unique setting (a disused warehouse space/auditorium in Philadelphia’s pristinely-maintained and architecturally beautiful Navy Yard section, an area neither of us had ever been to before), the band sounded fantastic. The problem was that, simply put, it was just insanely hot and crowded near the stage during their set. I simply wasn’t prepared for it and amidst the mad crush of people, I went to the back (where I could breathe) after the second song. Although the set didn’t have the same impact that it did when I watched it from the front, being able to not just breathe but move around relatively freely instead of having bodies on top of me, was well worth it. We went outside after the main set and watched the encore from there, as there was a window directly to the right of the stage where we could peak and see some of the band members. And the audio out there was fine, too. During the encore, I was pleasantly surprised when they played “Losing My Edge” as I know they don’t typically perform it live and haven’t for years. But on this opening night of their North American tour, filled with 3,400 young, sweaty dancers, some of whom seemed to be about half of Murphy’s age, it was very appropriate.
Openers Sleigh Bells were honestly one of the worst openers I’ve ever seen. A mix of bad ’80s hard rock and electro with even worse singing and no discernible song structure to speak of, it just flat out didn’t work.
LCD Soundystem’s setlist can be found here.
