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This was the first Sloan show i've been to where there weren't at least 30 people lined up before the door opened.
Sloan rocked The Independant of course, and played a good mix of old and new tunes. They look like they're having as good a time as ever, and i really think its great that they can still do the album-tour cycle. Again, Sloan shows are the BEST! Long Live Sloan!
When Chris walked in the door at The Independent, I said, “Hi Chris, remember me? I told you that I drove 900 miles from California to see you in Vancouver in October. This time, it’s only 90 miles. Welcome to San Francisco!” He smiled and said, “I remember! I can’t believe that you do that! Thanks for coming!”
When my wife and I saw Sloan at the Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver back in October, we were wowed by the great venue, good food and great crowd – and of course the terrific show. I was pretty much spellbound just seeing Sloan in person. But I now knew what the show was like, but was surprised to see just how small The Independent was. Whereas The Commodore is an old “classic” ballroom, The Independent is a small club, one bar, and extremely limited seating. But proximity to the stage was just unbeatable, and the sound system was superb.
The opening act, The 88, was very good, and their lead singer was simply drenched in sweat after the set. But unlike the Yoko Casionos in Vancouver, who stayed backstage to come out and sing a song together with Sloan in the encore, The 88 were out of the building before Sloan came out.
Sloan’s show was very similar to the one in Vancouver, which sort of surprised me. I counted 29 songs in San Francisco, and 30 or 31 in Vancouver, but that may have been because of the Yoko Casionos coming out for that one song that they did together. Most of the songs were from NHTEOI, and I would have expected Sloan to perform more of their classic hits simply because of their exposure here in the States. Songs I had hoped to hear, partially because I never heard them in Vancouver were Underwhelmed, She Says What She Means and especially Losing California. (After the show, I told Patrick that I was hoping they’d play Losing California, and he said that they were going to, but decided not to at the last moment. “Besides, we probably wouldn’t have played it very well anyway.”) Probably the most notable addition to the show was People of the Sky. Other added songs were I Hate My Generation, Coax Me, I Was Wrong and I Am The Cancer. Songs dropped from the Vancouver show included The Other Man and The Rest of My Life, All Used Up, and Someone I Can Be True With.
I’d post the set list, but unlike Vancouver, I didn’t get near one to take a photo of it for reference, and I missed two songs while taking some photos. But I hope someone else does, as I don’t remember what three songs came between Set In Motion and If It Feels Good Do It.. I heard other fans calling out songs, one Losing California, and the other Marcus Said.
Everyone was in fine form, although we didn’t see much of that big smile from Jay. Chris and Patrick worked the crowd, Chris licked the mic during Feels Good, and I’m sure every Canadian would have felt right at home. Chris did ask how many in the crowd were there for the first time, and I’ll bet it wasn’t 50%. Most had seen them before. That also skewed the crowd older than I saw them in BC. But when he asked for a sing along on Lines You Amend, he was blown back with the lyrics clearly coming back to him. Heck, I’ll bet they felt at home!
Everyone begged for a second encore, but just like before, when they say they’re done, they’re done! However, one thing different in San Francisco, when they went backstage, Chris picked up his jacket and cap, and came out within a minute, and started chatting it up. Both Greg and Mike Nelson were also out talking to fans who knew who they were. Then Jay wandered out. Followed by Patrick, who was very gracious to sign that same LP I purchased in Vancouver. I thought I’d missed Andrew, who was my missing signature, and my wife was dragging me out of the club, and as I turned to have one last look inside, I was startled to find myself face to face with Mr. Scott. Funny, he signed the inside of that double album, and he had the signature that was closest one to be legible. We talked for a minute or two, before my wife flagged down a cab and pulled me into it, and it was back to the hotel.
One other thing: before the show, we were taking a pleasure ride on the ferry across San Francisco Bay to Sausalito, and I started talking to two guys about half my age. I asked if they knew of The Independent. They both smiled and said, “Dude, we both work there. Are you going to see Sloan tonight?” Well, I don’t have a whole lot of experience in going to music clubs, and one of them, Aaron, told me to call The Independent to have them reserve a seat for us on the side. That made it so nice, and we were still sitting no more than 12 feet from Patrick’s mic.
Wow. Just a great show, guys!
Too bad I’ll have to wait at least another year to see them whenever they come to the West Coast. But last week, my very first passport showed up, so going to Canada won’t be such a hassle!
Lee Hower
Sacramento, California
