Spoon Played Conan, And It Was Amazing

Given that HAD house-faves Spoon have looked a tad stiff on the ol' television set in the past, we couldn't be happier with last night's performance (above) on Conan. The band hammered through "Written In Reverse" (complete with the full mid-song stop), and completely nailed it. The performance was subtle, minimalist, and completely rock and roll to its core. In other words, it captured everything we love about these guys. Well done, gents.

Spoon plays Mercury Lounge tomorrow night.

mp3: Spoon - Written In Reverse

pictures: Spoon at the HAD Archive

The White Stripes Played Conan And Made A Godawful Mess Of It

Okay, we'll start by saying this: for the most part, we love the White Stripes. Jack White is unquestionably a musical genius, and their show at the Greek Theater during the Get Behind Me Satan tour was one of our fave concerts of all time. So with all that love, let us just say, without reservations or scorn: What on earth happened last night?

Sure, the two have been off the road and out of the studio for a while, but last night on Conan the duo played something that sounded far less like a world reknowned rock band, and far more like a folk duo at an open mike night. The guitars (yes, two) sounded boxy and thin. Meg's playing was amateurish and completely superfluous. The harmonies weren't even really harmonies - it was like some bizarre semi-unison chorus that they had thrown together a minute before they went on air. On top of that, both Jack and Meg looked far more haggard then we'd seen them in a long time.

Look, it was kind of the Stripes to come back for Conan's last show, and we'll concede the fact that they may have felt more than a little stale having to dredge up a performance out of nowhere. But seriously, is this the best they can do? We had high hopes for the rumors that the band was in the studio and possibly working on another record and tour. But if this performance is a sign of things to come, sorry to say, count us out.

Reminder: The White Stripes Are On Conan Tonight

If The White Stripes had been showing some semblance of unity in the past year or so, the bigger news would be that it's Conan O'Brien's last night as host of Late Night. However, things being what they are (cancelled tour, no new material in a year and a half), we have to say we're pretty damn psyched to see the Stripes together again and tearing into some tunes.

Word on the internets is that the band has been working on a new record, but we haven't seen anything official yet. While we're hoping tonight might offer up a taste, we're guessing they might defer to more classic material. If classics are your thing, you might also want to check out the band's website, where they're liquidating a bunch of old tour merch dating back to 2002.