Show review: Now, Now, 4/11/2013

Last Thursday, I was cordially invited to see Minneapolis' now relatively established indie rock crew Now, Now (formerly Now, Now Every Children).  After a series of opening-set tours, and a spot on Jimmy Fallon, they've return to Denver on their second headlining tour, their first in a few years.

I picked up their first release back in '08 and found it nothing short of charming and heartwarming, and was excited to see how their new material would stand up live.  After two openers who did nothing but cause concern for the outcome of Now, Now's performance, I was quickly rewarded for my patience.  Now, Now continues to be the real deal.

Now, Now's now three members quietly set their things up on stage, did a quick check up on the levels, and them warmly eased into their first song.  Now, Now's performance was reserved, calculated.  There didn't seem to be a single note out of place, or thoughtlessly added.  There being the lack of a talented producer to filter their performance through, they had to rely on their ability to live up to their recorded sound, and they wonderfully.

Now Now's songs are patient, in no rush to win you over, rewarding you for your own patience with winsome, kinetic, tempestuous verses and choruses. Their Sleater-Kinney set up, but with occasional programmed keyboard tracks as bass back up, flaunted their understanding of the necessity to be as tonally aware as they are, that more volume, more drum fills, more vocal inflections don't make an interesting or enjoyable song, it's the attention to detail and pure, unwavering sense of direction that makes a song special.

Now, Now is currently on tour, and you'd be remiss to miss them:

Apr 14    The Blue Moose TapHouse, Iowa City, IA
Apr 15    Lincoln Hall, Chicago, IL
Apr 16    Cactus Club, Milwaukee, WI
Apr 17    Triple Rock Social Club, Minneapolis, MN
Apr 19    Highdive, Champaign, IL
Apr 20    Young Avenue Deli, Memphis, TN
Apr 21    Dan's Silverleaf, Denton, TX
Apr 22    Stubb's BBQ, Austin, TX
Apr 24    Pub Rock Live, Scottsdale, AZ
Apr 25    The Loft (UCSD), La Jolla, CA
Apr 26    The Wire, Upland, CA
Apr 27    Satellite Club, Los Angeles, CA
Apr 28    Constellation Room, Santa Ana, CA
Apr 30    Rickshaw Stop, San Francisco, CA
May 01    Cozmic Pizza, Eugene, OR
May 02    Mississippi Studios,Portland, OR
May 03    ELECTRIC OWL, Vancouver, Canada
May 04    The Crocodile, Seattle, WA