Partway through their 18-city whirlwind Lights, Camera, Factions tour, co-headliners Interpol and Spoon enveloped fans at their St. Louis concert on Sept. 9 at Stifel Theatre.
Amid deep red lighting, Spoon took to a darkened stage at 8 p.m. and brought fans 70-minutes of non-stop art pop-rock. The occasional, blinding white lights beaming into the crowd allowed Britt Daniel to acknowledge the fans, especially those in the mezzanine. Performing fan favorites such as the catchy “You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb,” “The Hardest Cut,” “My Babe,” and “I Summon You,” which had fans clapping in unison, Spoon played to please even pulling out “Mountain to Sound” which they hadn’t played live since 2011. They incorporated the title track to their 2022 album release Lucifer on the Sofa which was full of driving, steady drums. “My Mathematical Mind” brought more theatrics and lights with its big sound and flowed perfectly into “Got Nuffin” to keep the momentum going.
With a brief thanks to fans for showing up, Spoon wrapped up the night with “Rent I Pay.”
Starting at 9:45 p.m. in darkness save several bright white beams of light, Manhattan-based Interpol (and tour support) dazzled fans with another spectacular light show that often felt like the entire theatre was one giant disco ball. With no front lighting, the band mostly faded into nothingness except for occasional glimpses of drummer Sam Fogarino in a red top. The next 70-minutes were full of their moody, driving, post-punk, melodic indie rock. They kicked off with “Toni” from their July album release, The Other Side of Make Believe, and slid right into “Evil.” Fan favorites included “Pioneer to the Falls,” “Obstacle 1,” and “All the Rage Back Home.” They then performed the newer song “Passenger” for the first time live to eager fans.
With a simple light, Brooklyn-based duo, Water From Your Eyes opened the night, appearing subtly on stage to a growing crowd at 7 p.m. At first, it was hard to decipher whether it was a sound check or a performance. For 30-minutes, guitarist (and maybe more) Nate Amos, donning headphones, and Rachel Brown played seemingly for themselves, mostly ignoring the crowd with Brown pacing to and fro while vocalizing melodies that would easily fit into any David Lynch movie or TV show. At one point Brown quietly acknowledged the audience by saying it was their first time in St. Louis.
More photos: https://bit.ly/InterpolSpoon22cz
Spoon setlist: https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/spoon/2022/stifel-theatre-st-louis-mo-3bb0e85c.html
Interpol setlist: https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/interpol/2022/stifel-theatre-st-louis-mo-4bb0efca.html