Yo La Tengo and Built to Spill Bring Legendary Indie Rock Sounds to Sold-out Portland, OR Crowd (SHOW REVIEW/PHOTOS)

Early on in their set in front of a sold-out crowd at downtown Portland, Oregon’s Pioneer Courthouse Square on Wednesday, August 14th, Yo La Tengo’s Ira Kaplan mused how infrequently his band had shared the stage with Built to Spill throughout their four-decade-long career. On reflection, this is somewhat odd, considering the overlapping cult fanbases both bands have cultivated. They are both bands that have achieved legendary indie rock status while always flying just below the mainstream, and here they were, co-headlining in front of an audience eager to see them both. Odd yet perfect in some way, each of their hour-plus sets combined to make for a perfect summer evening filled with tunes from both coasts and different ends of the indie rock spectrum. 

For the last several years, beloved Boise band Built to Spill has toured at a seemingly relentless clip. Often playing as a trio these days with Melanie Radford on bass and Teresa Esguerra on drums, the band operates at the whimsy of Doug Martsch. Built to Spill sets of late are often unpredictable, satisfying the diehards and leaving the casual fans who found them on Spotify itching for “hits” or the other way around. Yet for this show, there was an element of predictability as the band celebrated the 30th anniversary of their second album, There’s Nothing Wrong with Love, by playing it straight through. To sweeten the deal, the band even brought along the album’s original cello player, John McMahon, who injected musical density and texture into the songs. Onstage thirty years later, the songs captured the rawness of Built to Spill’s early years where they were developing a signature sound that would bring together touches of grunge and garage rock with something much more artsy and delicate. “In the Morning” and “Reasons” were catchy as ever, while “Big Dipper” shined with Martsch’s bouncy vocals. “Fling” saw the band starting to stretch out a bit with McMahon’s cello shining before the atmospheric shoegaze of “Cleo” that gave way to one of Martsch’s first of many euphoria-inducing guitar solos.

For the remainder of the set, he would continue to showcase his role as one of rock music’s most underrated guitarists as he steered the band into jammy territory. Songs like “Distopian Dream Girl” and “Israel’s Song” saw the band preserving the punkier influences from the album while Martsch unloaded one blissful solo after another, often veering from straightforward indie rock to prog to even more dreamy sounds. After wrapping up the album, they treated the crowd to a small handful of other songs from throughout their career. While surely there were many who would’ve preferred the band to rail through some of their better-known tunes, there is a certain timelessness to Built to Spill’s music that has made them such a draw after more than three decades and an ever-changing lineup. Songs like “Made-Up Dreams” slowed down, while the old tune “Get a Life” impressed with its early formative sound, and the set closer “Time Trap” ended on a high considering it was off the band’s most popular album, Keep It Like a Secret.  

Built to Spill may be an institution of the Pacific Northwest, but Yo La Tengo is a contender for New Jersey’s best export next to the Sopranos and Anthony Bourdain. The trio of Ira Kaplan, Georgia Hubley, and James McNew opened in an energetic fashion with the heavy beat of the aptly titled “Sudden Organ.” Kaplan played down the defiant vocals and even more defiant (sudden?) bursts of keys, banging with his wrists, palms, and elbows like a madman before the band shifted into the frenetic and dark punk-laced “Sinatra Drive Breakdown.” One of the things that is so impressive about seeing Yo La Tengo live is their uncanny ability to shift from the quietest, most soothing band you’ve ever heard to loud rock and roll punks capable of melting your face. In Portland, they did this constantly, from moments like McNew taking vocals on the mournfully melodic “Stockholm Syndrome” and Hubley and Kaplan’s gentle duet on “Big Day Coming” to the cacophony of “Fallout” and the driving, feedback-laced coolness of “Double Dare.” 

There is often an almost calming presence to the members of Yo La Tengo, but looks can also be deceiving as they also know how to cut loose and ratchet up the rock antics. Such was the case when, during the beautiful and sprawling paisley-psych of “Decora,” Kaplan hopped off the stage and proceeded to crowd surf his guitar as he manically encouraged the audience to strum it as they passed it around. This was followed by the bass and guitar explosion of “This Stupid Rock,” the title track of the band’s recently released album. They would close out the set with the gloriously titled “Pass the Hatchet, I Think I’m Goodkind,” a bass-driven freakout vehicle that allowed Kaplan to once again blast off into psychedelic guitar solo heaven, much to the satisfaction of the fans drinking it all, in. It may have taken far too long for Built to Spill and Yo La Tengo to co-headline a bill, but even as both bands celebrate or are about to celebrate their fourth decade making music, they proved in Portland that they are still among indie rock’s most vital and youthful acts. 

All photos by Greg Homolka