I admit I have somewhat eclectic taste in music. With that caveat out of the way, like to share the experience of seeing Superchunk, with the full confidence that anyone–regardless of what bands they like–will convert to the cult of this seminal band.

The band formed in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, back in 1989 and simply went by the name "Chunk" (luckily they soon added the "Super"). After several 7"s on their label, Merge Records, they released "Slack Motherfucker," which in many was captured the essence of the alternative rock scene in the early Nineties. They eventually signed onto the mecca of the indie rock world, Matador Records, only to leave shortly because it was too mainstream and return back to their own Merge Records.

The band has released a ton of albums, If you are looking for a harder sound, I recommend Incidental Music 1991-1995, which is a somewhat random collection of songs that were previously released as singles. The band’s 1995 album, Here’s Where the Stings Come In marked their move to a more contemplative and developed sound as a result of the inclusion of more keyboards and acoustic guitars. Finally, 1999’s Come Pick Me Up shows a higher level of maturation and the influence of lead singer Mac McCaughan’s mellower and more murky side project, Portastic.

I had never been to the Knitting Factory before, but after my first visit, I would highly recommend it. For one thing, the tickets are as cheap as the Glass House ($12), and you can only get the tickets directly from the venue, so that prevents Ticketmaster from "convenience charge"-ing you twice the original price. The place also has a very cool atmosphere, with a large bar outside the main stage that reminded me of The Press and a smaller bar inside. They also serve the drinks in glass containers (classy!).

I didn’t know the opening band, The Good Life, at all. I don’t have much to say about them. Overall, I thought they were decent and much better than the average opening band. They described their sound as "party music for depressed people." My only real complaint about them would be the lead singer’s non-sequitors before the songs, a prime example being, "My mom’s birthday is January 23. This song is for her." Despite that singer’s talking, they definitely lived up to their responsibilities.

Now, on to the main event: Superchunk. They completely surpassed my expectations. They opened with a song off their new album Here’s To Shutting Up called "Late Century Dream." This was a great choice because it showed off their more introspective side, with lyrics like, "Everybody’s trying to make space around what they think they’ve got," but without sacrificing their upbeat sound with the inclusion of good keyboard work by McCaughan. At this point, let me quickly digress to describe the audience because they were a large part of what made the energy so great at the show. As opposed to several shows of the indie rock variety I’ve gone to lately, people actually seemed excited to be there, and weren’t ashamed to show it. Throughout the show, the floor was noticeably pounding up and down as a result of Superchunk’s loving fans, and everyone seemed to know the lyrics to every single song they played. The band was definitely able to feed into this energy as they continued to play exclusively songs from their new album, with the exception of "Low Branches" from Come Pick Me Up and a Mudvayne cover that I didn’t know.

A definite high point for the concert, at least for me, was "Art Class (Song for Yayoi Kusama)," which I think is the best track off the new record. Rarely do you find a song that just makes you happy whenever you hear it, but this is definitely one of them. Although I was disappointed they didn’t play any of their earlier work, the quality of the new songs and the sheer joy with which they performed them definitely compensated for it. Another highlight of the show was "Phone Sex," another excellent track that has a somewhat country sound to it. How could you not love a song called "Phone Sex" that’s about a guy being stood up for the aforementioned activity and which includes lyrics like, "Phone starts ringing and she’s almost dry/well there’ll be other nights/ but admit this is the worst time." I also thought they did a good job of determining a blueprint for the show, by building up to the songs that "rocked out" and closing with a few more mellow songs. The final song they played, "Drool Collection," was catchy and left the listeners with a comfortable feeling of closure.

I’m not exactly a hard-nosed music critic, and I can’t be objective, but believe me, this show was just really great. I know you may be thinking, "Superchunk? Are we in 1994?" I know we were only blossoming into adolescence, but a lot of really fantastic music was made back then. I can definitely relate to the lyric from "Out on the Wing" that says, "But all the music I loves is out of date/ so take to the place/ where’s there no such thing as taste." So Superchunk may not be the "It" band right now, but they’re still damn good.