Peter, Bjorn & John - Photo by Stacy Schwartz

The Clientele followed, capturing the sound of their records with impressive fidelity. Alasdair MacLean’s deceptively intricate guitar style incorporates strumming and picking in a manner that makes it sound like the work of two guitars. Newest band member Mel Draisey added some lovely harmonies along with her keyboard and violin work. The Clientele’s dreamy jangle pop sound is firmly anchored by some absolutely first-rate tunes that unfold to reveal intricate detail with multiple listens. Their music deals with such subtle emotions that it is perhaps best suited to solitary listening, but the band was still able to put on an enchanting show. MacLean’s droll banter may have seemed a bit off-putting to us polite American Midwesterners, but the humor provided a nice bit of levity between the hazy, comforting songs. 

The setlist favored the band’s latest LP God Save the Clientele, which is drenched even more heavily in '60s pop than their previous records. The bouncy “Here Comes the Phantom” and the wistful “I Hope I Know You” were early highlights. Before “Since K Got Over Me,” (from 2006’s Strange Geometry) MacLean told the audience, “You’ll recognize this one. It’s a favorite on Pitchfork.” They picked the energy up as the set progressed, with MacLean stretching out unexpectedly on a lengthy guitar solo. He joked that the lightly funky “Bookshop Casanova” was a cover of an early Peter Bjorn and John song, from back when they were a jazz funk outfit called Bulging Crotch. They closed (oddly) with an instrumental from God Save the Clientele called “Dance of the Hours” and informed the audience that they wouldn’t be back for awhile since they are going back into the studio. As impressive as their live show was, the prospect of a new LP is even more exciting.

Peter Bjorn and John made it clear early on that their goal was not to faithfully capture the sound of their records. Before they entered, a sitar-led instrumental version of their hit “Young Folks” played over the PA. The trio eventually took the stage and launched into “Let’s Call It Off” from last year’s Writer’s Block. They didn’t hesitate to utilize certain rock clichés, like walking right up to the edge of the stage while playing to elicit cheers. It certainly seemed to do the trick in terms of getting the crowd going, but I couldn’t help but feel that the showmanship was a bit unnecessary. I guess I just didn’t expect it from a band whose records rely on subtlety and restraint to get the point across. Still, they certainly brought an energy to the material, and it rippled out into the crowd.

As a band with a remarkable prowess in the studio, recreating the songs as a trio posed a certain challenge. Some songs worked with the minimal approach, but several of them fell flat for me. “The Chills,” in particular, never seemed to quite pick up enough energy to produce the desired shivers. “Amsterdam” and “Paris 2004” were both charmingly delivered, but simply sounded a bit bare. Guitarist Peter Moren hit the nail on the head himself as the band prepared to perform “Young Folks” with Mel Draisey of The Clientele - “I think that, after the record…which is really good…this is the second best version of this song we’ve done.” You could tell, too, that the band had put more work into this tune than some of the others. And it is a wonderful song; Draisey and Moren played it charmingly as a duet as the rest of the band laid back and let the melody work its indelible charm.

The band closed their set with an explosive rendition of “Objects of My Affection.” The soaring rocker consists of nothing more than guitar, bass and drums on the record and was perhaps the only tune that was actually even better live. They returned for an encore and after the majestic but rather dull “Roll the Credits,” delivered another highlight with “Up Against the Wall.” It got a little long by the time Peter started crowd-surfing, but its undeniable hook and the band’s eager energy made the (very) extended version worthwhile.