Burn Last Friday: Superchunk Returns
I was just as excited to experience my first show at the famed Cat’s Cradle as I was to see Superchunk. It could have happened fourteen years ago. I remember visiting my grandmother in Winston-Salem and deperately wanting to sneak out the family car and drive to the club to see a band. Can’t remember who it was. In a rare instance of good judgment, I opted instead to watch 120 Minutes and drink little bottled Cokes that my grandmother stocked just for me in the downstairs fridge.
I’ve always expected a gritty, downtown hole but the squeaky-clean [url=http://www.catscradle.com/]Cradle[/url] is located in a tiny strip mall, where Carrboro and Chapel Hill meet. With all the tags and layers of graffiti (“AVAIL – 1998 – Richmond Virginia”), the bathroom looks like a carbon copy of Emo’s. But closer inspection (what, you don’t closely inspect the restrooms at rock venues?) reveals that the floors were spotless. Just like the rest of club. Which was nice. And no smoking too. So really, this place is nothing like Emo’s. Except, strangely, they sell Shiner. You can’t even get Shiner in a lot of Texas.
Superchunk has been on hiatus for a few years now, so I didn’t know what kind of turnout to expect. The club quickly filled and many drove long distances to witness the band’s return (and play in a Sunday kickball tournament). We were surrounded by a posse who drove down from New York and Massachusetts. Just before the band took the stage, the Northeasterners passed out birthday hats to appropriately recognize Superchunk’s 16-year anniversary. The band was greeted to an entire club spontaneously singing “Happy Birthday.” It set the tone for a celebratory mood that lasted the entire evening.
Superchunk, like Jawbreaker (think 24-Hour Revenge Therapy’s “Condition Oakland”), for example, is a “place-and-time” band. Floating above the heads of the mostly older crowd, I could almost see the glossed-over memories of humid, front-porch evenings in Chapel Hill, circa 1993. So, yes, it was a nostalgia-fest to some extent. But it still sounded fresh when they ripped through favorites like “Hyper Enough” and “Her Royal Fisticuffs.” Considering the 16-year anniversary, the band closed with super-old material like “Cast Iron,” and “Slack Motherfucker” (does anyone remember Firehose covering this song on the Live Totem Pole EP?). After two riotous encores (Laura: “You know, I’ve always been really embarassed at leaving the stage and coming back… and then leaving the stage and coming back. It’s weird.”) the whole club was chanting “SUPE-ER-CHUNK, SUPE-ER-CHUNK!” as if Aerosmith had just exited the stage. Awesome.
If you care about this sort of thing… the setlist:
Kicked In
Hello Hawk
Green Flowers, Blue Fish
On the Mouth
Water Wings
Baxter
Like a Fool
Her Royal Fisticuffs
Watery Hands
Unbelievable Things
Rainy Streets
Hyper Enough
Encore One:
My Noise
100,000 Fireflies
Seed Toss
Encore Two:
Cast Iron
New Low
Slack Motherfucker