Christian Sarkis Graham

Hoboken-started indie rockers Yo La Tengo played to a sold-out Union Transfer crowd on Saturday. Here are some highlights and snapshots from the night. A soothing soundtrack to tumultuous times Unlike the fiery, funked up urgency that a title like There’s a Riot Going On might suggest, Yo La Tengo’s 2018 release settles on a consistently and noticeably tranquil tone. Even for a band that’s built a 30-plus-year career on layering blankets of sonic texture over wistfully whispered lyrics. But after the first set, which heavily favored tunes from this markedly mellow new album, it seems that at times as charged as these, maybe a little musical Valium is just what the doctor prescribed. Deeper into the music After the intermission break, the band took a welcome dive into their prolific and eclectic back catalog, rolling out spiky and blistering versions of “False Alarm” and “Blue Line Swinger” from Electr-o-pura, and stand-outs “Autumn Sweater” and “Sugarcube” off of 1997’s seminal I Can Feel The Heart Beating As One. The covers Through the night, cover songs wound up taking as many setlist slots as tracks from any one of the band’s albums, apart from There’s a Riot. Tributes included Sun Ra Arkestra’s “Dreaming,” “Right Side of My Mind” by Angry Samoans and “Friday I’m In Love” by The Cure—the latter of which featuring the work of some local helping hands in the form of… Kurt Vile Philly’s grungy rambling man brought his sulky swagger to the stage for the Cure cover, and the

After last month’s collaborative release of Lotta Sea Lice, local crust grunge apostle Kurt Vile and slightly less-local Aussie deadpan rambler Courtney Barnett brought their slacker supergroup to the halls of Upper Darby’s Tower Theater. Here are some photos and highlights. 1. “Over Everything” opener Once they took the stage, the pair didn’t waste any time before jumping into their album’s kickoff track, the hypnotically infectious single, “Over Everything.” Volleying each of their drollingly wistful verses before spiraling into a wily outro of twangy, textured layers of guitar, they set just the right tone for the night. 2. Solo “covers” The setlist was evenly divided between Lotta Sea Lice tracks and favorites from each singer’s respective solo catalogue—standouts including Vile’s recent sleeper hit “Pretty Pimpin’” and the apathetically rollicking Barnett anthem, “Avant Gardner.” The most frugal of the night’s flannel-clad fans had to walk away content, knowing they effectively bagged a 3-for-1 indie rock bargain on the ticket bill. 3. The city’s biggest hangout The whole venue felt like it was teeming with a kind of warm, affable energy—from fans’ friendly shouts to the backing band members (“Hi, Stella-on-drums!”) and even surprise little echoes of birthday wishes to Courtney floating from the back of the house. The night seemed like less of a stop on a concert tour and more like a packed house show of old buddies that accidentally overbooked and wound up in a 3,00