It’s more than 20 years since lo-fi indie-rock legends Sebadoh first hit these shores, and six years since their last visit.
In that time, their popularity hasn’t waned one bit; if anything, the nostalgia factor has only cemented their place as a seminal part of the scene.So it was no surprise to have Northcote Social Club’s band room packed to capacity on a Tuesday night (28 January), a day after a long weekend no less, with Sebadoh playing the first of two sold-out shows at the inner-north venue.
While frontman Lou Barlow can be a man of few words on stage, he and the rest of the band were in good spirits as they launched into an old favourite, ‘Not A Friend’ from 1994’s classic ‘Bakesale’.
Touring on the back of new album ‘Act Surprised’, also their first in six years, these tunes featured heavily. With the set channelling early ‘90s alt-rock and with several tracks led by bassist Jason Lowenstein – who Barlow reconnected with upon moving back to Northampton, Massachusetts and igniting this latest phase – standouts were single ‘Celebrate The Void’, ‘Phantom’ and the title track.
As with many Barlow shows – both solo, with Sebadoh and Dinosaur Jr. – there’s a certain endearing chaos to his performance, and tonight it played out in a bass that refused to even get in tune.
As he toiled away and Lowenstein bravely tried to stall with hit and miss banter, Barlow suggested he was struggling a bit. “We’re not meant to give away that we’re struggling,” Lowenstein replied. “Oh we are,” Barlow quipped.
And when Barlow again assumed lead on guitar, he asked for more reverb and suggested: “Jason was playing in your bedroom, and now I’m playing on a mountaintop.”
While the advertised playing time of an hour stretched into two, fans were in heaven even if the latter part of the set felt like it lulled a little.
But back out for an encore and with Barlow wryly saying if it was ok they were going to play some old tunes before launching into ‘Bakesale’ highlight ‘Magnet’s Coil’, both the band and the crowd’s energy brought this night to a close in exuberant style.
