For the first time in over a decade, the unsung heroes of ‘90s indie rock Pavement are back out on tour. After the band officially reunited in May of this year at the Fonda Theater in Los Angeles, Pavement played a string of festival shows before landing back in California last night (September 7) at the Balboa Theater in San Diego to kick off their world tour. Along with a return to touring, the band also reissued their Spit On A Stranger EP from 1999 which features their single of the same name along with some other rarities.
Earlier this year, Glide published an article about the reunions we were most excited to see in 2022. Pavement was high up on that list, the underdogs of ‘90s rock had been off the live performing circuit since 2010 when they performed at a club in Argentina. Since their debut album in 1992, Pavement has built a storied discography of cryptic lyrics and fuzzy guitar riffs. They brought their discography to life last night as they went through their 26-song setlist which featured classics, deep cuts, and songs the band hasn’t performed in decades.
The band kicked off the night with “Grounded”, a hit from their 1995 album Wowee Zowee. It wasn’t too long into the night before the setlist began to shock the crowd, 5 songs in Pavement plays “Home”, a deep cut from their underrated 1993 release Westing (By Musket and Sextant), the song has not been played live since the year said album was released. They reached back to that album later in the night when Pavement tore through “Spizzle Trunk” which had not made it on to a setlist from the band since 2010. Other deep cuts like “Blue Hawaiian” made an appearance for the first time since 1997 and “Box Elder” along with “Give It A Day” also were performed for the first time since 2010.
Pavement crafted a terrific setlist to kickoff their full reunion tour. They ran through at least one song from each album, introducing new fans to the classics while feeding their day one fans with B-sides. The band begins a three-night stay at the Orpheum Theater in Los Angeles on September 8 before heading out on their tour which has them on the road until February of next year.
Check out the full setlist, tour dates, and footage from their tour kickoff below:
Dates: https://pavementband.com/#tour
