Los Angeles residents love their Peter Bjorn and John – so much so that the Swedish indie rock trio was able to pull off two shows at the El Rey in one night, selling out the first. May 14th’s early set brought a flood of excited fans into the venue as soon as the doors opened.
As the band set up backstage, New Zealand’s Bachelorette opened the night. The one-woman show of Annabel Alpers included an array of recorded vocals and vintage synthesizers, tambourines, an electric guitar and a laptop.
Shortly after Alpers scampered off stage, upbeat tracks bellowed out from behind a closed curtain and Peter Bjorn and John emerged on stage. The band, highlighted by a blue three-thumbed fist backdrop replica of the cover art to their latest release, Gimme Some, launched into an energetic set of audiences favorites and tracks off the new album. After 10 songs, including “Far Away,” “Let’s Call It Off,” “Amsterdam,” “Dig a Little Deeper,” and the new track “I Know You Don’t Love Me,” the guys ended the set and excited the stage.
After a quick towel off and an outfit change by Peter into something a tad less sweaty, the band began their encore with “Nothing To Worry About” before jumping into their trademark “Young Folks.” Mid encore, giant foam Gimme Some fists were chucked into the crowd and promptly incorporated into audience dance maneuvers.
Despite the fact that the band had another full set scheduled for later in the evening, Peter Bjorn and John maintained a hearty dose of energy and continued on with 3 more encore songs before ending the set with “Down Like Me,” “Breaker Breaker,” and “When You Find Out” (The Nerves cover). John and Bjorn exited the stage as Peter stood in the corner and signed everything from ticket stubs to a plastic iPhone case.
Following the performance, booths were set up with signs that read, “Hungry for seconds? Stay for the late show – only $10.” The option seemed popular as the night was still young and Peter Bjorn and John round 2 seemed like an appropriate way to continue on with the evening.
Before exiting the venue, we hung around to snap a photo of the band, waiting patiently as the band’s Tour Manager, Chris Newmyer, attempted to corral all 3 members, lamenting over the fact that Bjorn was no where to be found. While waiting for our photo posse to assemble, I asked Newmyer if the double shows in one night thing is something the band does often to which he replied: “Occasionally -not in every city, thank goodness.” Commenting on the fact that the band emerged from backstage, clothed in new attire and wiping sweat from their brows Newmeyer continued on with “Outfit changes for this tour are not for fashion points, they are out of necessity.”
