Yo La Tengo at the Michigan Theatre

As a friend of mine put it, “Yo La Tengo beat my ass severely.”

Sure enough, YLT really can put on a good show. Compared to the last time I saw them, this summer, the band was amazing. Ira mentioned during the encore that he wasn’t used to playing theaters with seats, but I thought the venue really worked well for them. It’s not so much the particular venue (though I’ll say I’m a fan of sitting at shows), but just that Yo La Tengo is not an outdoor festival act. Two hundred feet back in ninety-four degree heat, I think some of James’ delicate organ work was lost on me.

Last night, though, the band was in top form. In particular, Ira’s guitar playing really comes across live. I’ve said it before: Ira Kaplan is a desperately underrated guitarist, be it on brittle glass slide lines, brilliant hooks, or Thurston Moore-esque freakouts. He’s also just a lot of fun to watch.

The setlist was great, too. YLT opened with (let’s be honest) all the memorable songs from the new album, then reached way back in the catalog for several crowd-pleasers. We got “Barnaby, Hardly Working” from President Yo La Tengo, fer cryin’ out loud. My fervent hope to hear “Cherry Chapstick” was in vain, and I was a bit surprised they didn’t dig out “Sugarcube,” a song of the variety that got just enough airplay to work itself immovably into every setlist a lesser indie band would ever play. “Autumn Sweater” turned up, of course, and I didn’t expect “Big Day Coming.” Maybe the most fun, though, was the four minute raw, distorted mess that punctuated the first verse of the band’s brilliant cover of “Little Honda.”

Oh, covers? Again, Yo La Tengo did not disappoint. The Kinks’ “There Is No Life Without Love” was quiet and dreamy, while Alex Chilton’s “Can’t Seem to Make You Mine” was tasteful, though probably lost on most the audience. Not that I’m in any position to be snarky: I have no idea what their third cover was, and Google isn’t helping turn up anything for the few lyrics I remember. Anyone who was there help me out? The comments section awaits you.