Walking into Bimbo’s to see Yo La Tengo’s backline was like approaching the gates of Disneyland as a little boy. I was so excited. Their song book is a thousand pages long, and this being KUSF’s 30th anniversary party, it seemed like a special opportunity for the band to do some of their more quirky and awesome tunes.
They opened with the Ramone’s “Geena is a Punkrocker” to get people moving, then quickly switched instruments to play “The Room Got Heavy,” off their latest record, I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass (Matador; 2006). The psychedelic sounds of the electric piano, the bongo grooves, and shredding keyboard drones with Georgia’s disembodied voice floating above it all totally blew my mind.
They played several more songs from I Am Not Afraid of You, plus some older favorites and one or two audience requests. They also played several covers from the year 1977 (KUSF’s inaugural year), offering one gem after another, including a smoldering take on Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams” that proved powerful enough to knock my friend flat on his back.
Ira is one of the greatest indie rock guitar players alive, a master of extended atonal guitar soloing. With James and Georgia holding down the groove as solidly as they do, he can swan dive off the melody into the realm of glorious mistakes.
They encored twice, first with a Sun Ra doo-wop song, then closing the night with the Modern Lovers’ “Roadrunner”, cleverly changing the lyrics to celebrate KUSF’s birthday. It was an awesome show put on by one of San Francisco’s greatest musical institutions. Congratulations on making it to the big three-oh KUSF!
