Scenestar

ARTICLE BY MYCHELLE PETERSON
PHOTOS COURTESY OF SUB POP RECORDS

JULY 8 | CHICAGO—Sometimes the best way to approach a live show is to go in with no expectations. That way the pressure is off the band to perform some miraculous, life-changing event, and you can still leave feeling satisfied and smiling. I walked into Wolf Parade’s sold-out House of Blues show in Chicago with this very attitude, ready to see what the band would deliver, but not expecting a whole lot of anything.

After hearing the recently released album At Mount Zoomer, I felt confident that Wolf Parade’s sound had not changed drastically from 2005 debut Apologies to the Queen Mary. Both albums are full of lush arrangements and offer a few unexpected surprises in the form of small, nuanced details, best heard through high-quality headphones. But even to the casual listener, the band provides a great background soundtrack to a lazy afternoon at home.

Although the band hasn’t released anything since 2005, and the band’s frontmen have respectable side projects (Spencer Krug leads Sunset Rubdown, and Dan Boeckner fronts Handsome Furs), the House of Blues not only sold out, but it was pulsing with excitement as the crowd gathered prior to the show. An early set time didn’t seem to deter anyone from getting to the venue early to secure a spot on the floor, and it was definitely packed long before the opening act took the stage at 6:30 p.m.

When Wolf Parade finally emerged to the sounds of rabid and anxious screams, the night truly got started. Opening with Zoomer’s “Language City,” Spencer, Dan and the rest of the band didn’t let anyone doubt their live performance. The band was in top form, tearing through all nine tracks from the new album. Yes, that’s right. They played the entire album, including the 10-plus minute “Kissing the Beehive,” which was one of the highlights of the night. The new songs sounded stronger than on the record, which is no small feat considering how tight the album sounds.

The band seemed slightly reserved with crowd interactions, but when someone yelled, “California Dreamer,” Spencer said, “OK.” And the band followed by playing it. Sure, it was on the set list somewhere, but the guys seemed relaxed enough to mix things up as the night went on.

As with many of my recent favorite bands, the guys proved concentration is key. They didn’t rely or even attempt fancy theatrics or stories to satiate the crowd in between songs. They simply didn’t need it. The songs were in fact enough.

Though I really don’t take Wolf Parade to be a crowd surf-inducing band, all the cool kids were doing it up front pretty much all night. Security didn’t seem to be too concerned despite warning signs to the contrary, and Spencer’s only comment to the crowd was to “be good to each other.”

Not surprisingly, the older tracks elicited near-deafening screams, and the floor buckled as the crowd started to jump and stomp along with the beat of each song. By the time the encore rolled around, the entire audience swooned through “I’ll Believe in Anything,” and Wolf Parade ended the evening on a dizzying high note with “Fancy Claps.”

Having gone in not really expecting much, I was blown away, and as a result, I have had both albums on repeat much of the following week. Wolf Parade has two shows scheduled in Los Angeles this weekend at the Music Box, July 18 and 19. Tickets are still available at Ticketmaster, and I highly recommend you get some now!