New Jersey guitar band The Feelies reunited for a glorious opening gig for a Sonic Youth show that had darker elements at play during a free IndependenceDay show as part of New York's River 2 River Festival.
Yo La Tengo's Ira Kaplan accurately described The Feelies' performance to Listening Post in the venue's press area as "phenomenal." They still had it – the same, dervish-like, post-Velvet Underground sound that has drawn new fans since the late '70s. I told Kaplan that The Feelies' set was perfect afternoon music, and he agreed. Then I did that hip-hop gesture where you bounce a fist off of your opposing shoulder a couple times and walked off, figuring it'd be better to leave it at that. (Like The Feelies and Sonic Youth, Yo La Tengo are one of my old-time faves.)
I'm pretty sure the last cassette tape I ever bought was by The Feelies, but I'd never seen them live until Friday. As it turns out, their bass player Brenda Sauter wears a kid glove on her left hand while playing – who knew?
Here's a photo gallery of The Feelies' much-anticipated July 4 reunion show, with a couple of sample tracks thrown in as accompaniment:
this audio or video is no longer availableIts Only Life - The Feelies
The Feelies, on stage together for the first time since 1991. Their set included new material:
All photos: Ria Fuentes
Lead guitarist Glenn Mercer strums away at the beginning of the set:
Rhythm guitarist Bill Million churns away in perfect time:
Yes, this show really did take place on the island of Manhattan, despite all the greenery (after all, this was Battery Park):
this audio or video is no longer availableCrazy Rhythms - The Feelies
One-gloved Brenda Sauter displayed a queen-like poise on bass:
Percussionists Dave Weckerman Stan Demeski could not have been more on time – an essential component of The Feelies' precise sound:
Then the crowd got ready for Sonic Youth's set (photos up soon):
Note: This article originally referred to The Feelies as being a Boston band, but they're actually from New Jersey. The author has failed to get this straight for at least twenty years.
See Also:
