Spiritualized captivates Lincoln Hall

Given frontman Jason Pierce (J. Spaceman’s) penchant for grandiose arrangements with his band Spiritualized, I was curious, if a bit disappointed, when I arrived at Lincoln Hall July 12 to discover only enough microphones set up for an atypically small, five-person band. With a palette that includes everything from choral and orchestral parts to psychedelic guitar pedals, I wondered how Pierce’s unique brand of “space” rock could be achieved without the sounds that make Spiritualized, well, spiritual. When the band hit the first chords of pop-rock jammer “Hey Jane,” I realized my skepticism was ill-founded. Fresh off a sub-headlining performance at Coachella, Spiritualized delivered a gritty two-hour set, focusing on the heavier cuts from their extensive catalogue and playing five new songs.

Spiritualized is a rock ‘n’ roll band at heart; thus, abandoning the choirs and violins made perfect sense for the size of the venue and invited the audience to experience its head-banging nucleus. “Come Together” off of their seminal 1997 album “Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space,” for example, soared with the screeching electric guitars, pulsating drums and aggressive bass, so never once did I miss the brass section that is so integral to the recorded version. Pierce and longtime guitarist Doggen’s guitars wailed through the audience-favorite, even extending to a prolonged jam at the end of the song. The band completely locked in with one another, and shredded expertly till the final few notes.

Though there were many, perhaps the highlight of the evening was their fresh take on track “Let it Flow” from their album “Pure Phase.” After Pierce sang his few sorrowful verses about surrendering to the syringe and letting the heroin flow, green strobe-lights flashed, underscoring the band’s heart-stompingly intense and drug-referencing rock out. The intensity of this particular moment was reminiscent – though not derivative – of The Velvet Underground’s “Heroin” where the drums imitate a junkie’s heart as she shoots up.

New material sounds promising. Pierce’s own well-chronicled relationship with heroin and alcohol rendered this moment particularly personal.

That Pierce suffered near-fatal liver cancer and painful experimental treatments in 2012 intensified the lyrics throughout the entire concert. Since his days as a young musician in his first band Spaceman 3, Pierce’s lyrical concerns have been morbid; death, illness, broken hearts and spiritual decay are common motifs throughout his work. Accordingly, his recent near-death hospital visits added an unsettling but strangely satisfying credibility to his lyrics, most of which are general enough to be relatable. This is precisely why Pierce churns out such great records and even more transcendent live performances. The lyrics are unabashedly existential and, therefore, universal, so as they often repeat over and over and usually crescendo, one cannot help but have a moment with the arresting music – that moment is unique to the listener.

At the Lincoln Hall show, I watched a man close his eyes and scream during chorus of “Come Together” and another woman sing along with and eventually cry to “So Long You Pretty Thing.” The potency of Pierce’s lyrics was reaffirmed for me over and over as I observed people around me surrendering themselves to the music, and eventually losing myself to “Let it Flow” and “All of My Tears.”

The new material sounded promising. “The Morning After” is a bouncy, friendlier song than most of their work, though it does recall some of the lighter but nevertheless thoughtful stylings of their latest album “Sweet Heart Sweet Light.” With its languid tempo and romantic melody “I’m Your Man” played like an apt choice for a last dance song at a 1975 senior prom; however, I would not be surprised if this song undergoes some big alterations by the time it comes recording it because Pierce had a little paper with some lyrics scratched out on it, suggesting the song’s infancy. “D Song” and “A Song (New Reprise),” conversely, were heavier tracks and both a great showcase for the drummer who owned the songs with gleeful confidence.

A little more than halfway through their set, they played rousing closer “So Long You Pretty Thing” from the album “Sweet Heart Sweet Light.” “All your dreams of diamond rings and all that rock and roll could bring you / Sail on, so long,” crooned Pierce over and over till the song ended. Here, he seemed to lament his lack of stardom after years of making boundary-pushing rock music, and ultimately said goodbye to a young musician’s dream. Although it is easy to argue that this is a depressing concession for an artist, I can’t help but wonder how freeing this must be for him. Abandoning yearning for fame could lead this band into some uncharted territory, and maybe since they did not bring the usual lineup, they will not be using the familiar palette for their upcoming album. As I learned at their Lincoln Hall performance, it seems Spiritualized is becoming less predictable with age.

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Set list:

“Here Comes the Road”

“Hey Jane”

“Electricity”

“Let It Flow”

“The Morning After”

“I’m Your Man”

“She Kissed Me”

“Let’s Dance”

“D Song”

“So Long You Pretty Thing”