Live Review, Photos: The Posies and Brendan Benson - Atlanta, GA

Photos by Chris Rank

We often go see “vintage” rock bands to recapture our youth or hopefully see the magic that first caused us to fall in love with a band. Often we are disappointed. This past weekend, I went to see two of my favorite acts from the ‘90s who not only didn’t disappoint but who would probably reject the “vintage” moniker altogether.

The Posies and Brendan Benson of The Raconteurs recently kicked off a U.S. tour sharing headlining credits. After Seattle’s Aqueduct kicked off the evening, Benson took the stage, backed with The Posies. Throughout an hour-long set, he weaved in and out of songs from 1996’s One Mississippi to 2009’s My Old Familiar Friend. Standouts included “Garbage Day” and “Metarie.” The Posies have always stood out for their vocals, and they didn’t disappoint as Benson’s back-up singers.

Toward the beginning of their set, Posies’ guitarist/vocalist Ken Stringfellow announced that the band’s new album, Blood/Candy, is its best ever. Granted, it’s kind of something he has to say, but it’s certainly not a sentiment from a band living off past success. Throughout a 90-minute set, Stringfellow and Jon Auer played with the passion and intensity that one would expect from a much younger band, albeit tempered by experience. Stringfellow performed with reckless abandon on both old (“Definite Door”) and new (“Conversations”) songs, and Auer continues to shine on lead guitar and vocals. The evening’s biggest highlight came at the end with an encore performance of Big Star’s “September Gurls” by both acts, who were joined onstage by R.E.M.’s Mike Mills.

View photos from the evening in the gallery below.

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