Yo La Tengo hit the keyboards straight away for a rendition of 'Georgia Vs Yo La Tengo', from 2003's unsurprisingly excellent 'Summer Sun' LP. Rarely is a song titled so literally. Over a funky pretty piano motif, played by her husband Ira and drummer James McNew, Georgia Kaplan hits an ancient electronic keyboard to produce some truly nasty sounds.
This is Yo La Tengo all over - capable of producing great beauty and great noise, often at the same time, in the same song. They are a band as genuinely happy strumming two-chords as ripping into freeform Zappa-like solos.
So far so good. Georgia soon reverts back to her familiar drum stool and the small, but dedicated crowd is treated to a heartfelt 'Little Eyes' and a gorgeously charming 'Way To Fall'.
These are subtle spellbinding pieces that highlight the power of tranquillity over discordance. But, as the amps go up, especially on a twenty-minute cover of Sun Ra's 'Nuclear War', the sound is literally blown away. Ira Kaplan is a truly amazing guitar player, but as he beats his six-string to death the wind laughs in his face.
Unfortunately, they end up sounding indulgent and muddled - something this band are anything but. The final chord rebounds around like a punctured balloon and disappears into the ether. Ultimately, they are better suited to concert halls than meadows. A disappointment.
