Being one of the most inspirational and important bands is a bold statement, but to me these Yo La Tengo really opened doors for cult music. They are known for never playing the same show twice so it was no surprise that their appearance as part of legendary Avant Garde jazz musician Ornette Coleman was a special one. Yo La Tengo mixed things up by playing more of an acoustic set with a question and answer session as a way of interacting more with the crowd which is a pretty cool idea and even though the crowd was made up of the moody Londoners and music nerds (myself included) the crowd warmed to the idea quite quickly and even though some of the questions were rubbish (what's your favourite super power?, have you seen any good films?, you get the idea) it did make for a very unique and intimate show. The band generally warmed to the questions and, although they have probably been asked these sorts of questions hundreds of times answered most in jest.
Their set was breathtaking, opening with one of my all time favourites 'Tom Courtenay' (sang by Georgia Hubley) it couldn't have been any better. That was until they played the song again after a crowd member asked them to, this time it was song by guitarist Ira Kaplan it was simply amazing.
The showcase of their new material sounds like classic Yo La Tengo and will be well worth a listen upon release later in the year and they also played some tracks from the little known side project Condo Fucks.
Despite being an acoustic set, Kaplan still managed to whip the fuzzbox out for a few numbers which really aided as some of the classics such as Sugercube which just wouldn't sound the same without the messy feedback from the guitars.
This was a special gig and part of a very special festival, Ornette Coleman has picked some absolute delights, if you haven't checked anything out yet be sure to check it out.
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