The Spinto Band *The Mercury Lounge, NYC* 7-17-2009

It was truly a treat this weekend to attend the New York City show of the Spinto Band who was doing a 4 date mini tour, also know to their fans as ‘The Freakend’. Along for the ride were The Swims, And The Moneynotes, and Big Bang TV. A killer lineup.

I’ve been to a few Spinto shows in my day and the level of energy onstage is always incredible, but on Friday at the Mercury Lounge, the band brought it up to a whole new level. We’re talking astonishing. This had to be the best show I have attended in the past five years, or quite frankily, possibly ever. The room was packed with people ready to dance and it was at least 85 degrees in there. So warm the band was sweating before they got onto the stage.

The Spintos ripped through about 16 songs and somehow brought the energy up with every song. They even invited three fans onstage to dance to ‘Oh Mandy’ which was by far one of the coolest things I’ve seen. Nick Krill and Tom Hughes always deliver on the vocals and the combination of the two fit perfectly back and fourth on stage. The rest of the Spintos, Jon Eaton, Joey Hobson, Jeff Hobson and Sam Hughes hold it all down, never missing a note. From the sounds of ‘Later On’ to ‘Direct to Helmet’ this was surely a night to remember. Hopefully there will be another Freakend in the near future.

The Setlist:
Cat’s Pajamas (listed as ‘Cat’s Shams’)
Brown Boxes
Summer Grof
Vivian, Don’t
Mountains
They All Laughed
Later On
Brazil
Direct to Helmet
The Black Flag (listed as ‘Blag Flak’)
Japan is an Island
Oh Mandy
Pumpkins and Paisley
Late
Encore Included:
Needlepoint and don’t quote me on this, but I believe Crack the Whip. They were not written on the setlist as the band discussed the encore songs on the side of the stage.