Spoon x 3 [With Quasi, Black Joe Lewis, Low, Dale Watson, Atlas Sound & the Strange Boys]

Few bands have a harder time shaking Austin than Spoon. Even though most of the band lives elsewhere, their presence lingers on the streets, in the record stores and in the bars. Occasionally there's a Brit or Eno sighting; their continued immersion in the local scene is something of wonder. As far as local heroes go, these guys rank up there. For the girl at the Spoon show waiting for the song she heard on a car commercial to the patient fan still waiting for tunes from A Series of Sneaks, everyone has a reason to love Spoon, no matter where they go or what they're up to.

All that being said, a three-night stand is a somewhat odd proposition. Though their popularity never seems to wain, their live show hasn't ever stacked up against the recordings. This isn't a slight: they're just one of those bands that does what they do better in the soft light of the studio. They don't have Explosions-esque anthems, the sing-alongs are dark and sarcastic, and though Brit's on-stage presence is some kind of magic, he usually seems torn between adoring his guitar or the crowd with his winks and rockstar 'alright's. All that, and this situation they've got with recorded works: they're all brilliantly produced, and out in the crowd we can't hear all the nuance we've come to know so intimately on the records. We're anxious to hear new material, though, and when we caught them earlier this year at the Scoot Inn, we were blown away by how tight they are despite a long stretch without a live show. They're pros, and we expect nothing less than amazement at Stubb's this weekend. They'll be playing tunes from their rich catalog as well as songs from their forthcoming full-length and new EP Got Nuffin.

All three shows are supported with top-notch talent and after shows worth checking out (Nakia, the Low Lows and the Black). We're giving away tickets to night three, which we're presenting in cooperation with KVRX:

Spoon [Official] [MySpace]
Atlas Sound [MySpace]
The Strange Boys [MySpace]
The Black [MySpace]