Everything 10/13/2024 by Casey Carlson

MJ Lenderman Performs at a Sold Out First Avenue

Two things were clear from the amount of denim jackets, bandannas, and trucker caps at First Avenue last night: Fall has arrived, and so has MJ Lenderman. Performing his biggest headlining show to date in the iconic Mainroom, Lenderman brought in a crowd as eclectic and twangy as his music, so much so that fans who were in town for the Twenty-One Pilots show across the street at Target Center could have confused the historic First Avenue for a dive bar. From the Waxahatchee girlfriend/MJ Lenderman boyfriend couples swaying together in the dimly lit room to the lonesome cowboys pounding back Hamms tallboys in the back, and even the plaid-wearing older fans bobbing their heads along, it was a night that felt like a laid-back reunion for anyone with a soft spot for overdriven guitars and pedal steel.

Having recently talked up Manning Fireworks on Fresh Tunes Friday, we were thrilled to experience the entire track listing live. Of course, at just nine songs and roughly 30ish minutes in length, that was no great feat for Lenderman and his band. The crowd was treated to another twelve tracks from across his catalog, including a cover of Smog’s “37 Pushups” and a surprise: The band’s first-ever live performance of Pianos, a track that seemed to catch even longtime fans off guard. (Speaking of which, Pianos is one of 160 tracks put together by an incredible list of artists for a compilation album Cardinals at the Window, benefitting victims of hurricane and flood relief in North Carolina, Lenderman’s home state. Highly recommend picking that up.)

Opening the set with Manning Fireworks, the title track from the album, Lenderman’s occasional Southern drawl and effortless cowboy strumming slowly washed over the room, which was dead silent as the band began. On My Knees followed, its grainy guitars and slightly off-kilter charm pulling the audience further into Lenderman’s down-home indie rock, evidence that even the quieter moments in Lenderman’s catalog hold as much weight as the bangers.

Highlights from the set included the woozy, introspective Wristwatch and the driving She’s Leaving You, which, despite only being a half year old, had nearly the entire crowd singing along to its chorus. Older favorites like You Have Bought Yourself a Boat gave us that signature Lenderman blend of dry humor and existentialism, while TLC Cagematch—with its absurdist nod to pro wrestling—was also a crowd favorite judging by the amount of knowing chuckles and cheers..

And then came Rudolph—a thunderous storm of guitars, and it only amped up as Lenderman tore through tracks like Inappropriate and Hangover Game, delivering one raw, unapologetic shredding moment after another. As the main set neared its end, Lenderman kicked off Bark at the Moon, which had the audience in it’s trance-like ending for what felt like longer than the seven minute shoegaze outro that was on the album, then transitioning into No Mercy.

The encore brought a moment of unintentional comedy gold when MJ Lenderman, apparently suffering from the same memory loss his lyrics often suggest, forgot to introduce his band. After a reminder from the crowd, he sheepishly quipped, “Damn, we all got lost in the sauce tonight,” a line that could serve as the perfect tagline for his entire discography. With a grin, he finally introduced his bandmates, all of whom seemed to be having as much fun as the audience. Jon Samuels, in particular, stood out – windmilling and jumping around on the rowdier tracks, radiating the kind of rockstar energy that perfectly complemented Lenderman’s laid-back approach. The left side of the crowd seemed to rock just as hard as he did. After introducing the band, a fan shouted, “What’s your name?” to which Lenderman responded with a smile, “I’m obviously Prince… Just kidding, I’m just Jake.”

The crowd was treated to a blistering three-song encore. Tastes Just Like It Costs had the audience rocking, while SUV hit like a punk song and had a large group in the front moshing- a rarity at an alt-country show. Knockin’, was the one we were all waiting for, The song’s slow build to it’s anthemic screaming chorus capped off a show that felt like another historic night in the mainroom.

It’s rare to attend a show and know, without a doubt, that it’s going to leave an impression on everyone who was lucky enough to be there. The kind of show where you’ll be able to proudly say, “I was there for that one,” when the artist’s name is shining in lights, and the only tickets you can afford are way up in the nosebleeds. But as we walked out onto the corner of 7th Street and First Avenue last night after the show, asking each other for cigarettes, there was that sense among the crowd that we had just watched an artist that’s only going to get bigger from here.

This was MJ Lenderman’s biggest headlining show to date – But it’s clear it won’t be his last. Who knows? A few years from now, we might all be reminiscing about this night, claiming we were there when Lenderman truly arrived, watching his moment unfold. And in rock-and-roll, that’s one of the coolest badges of honor you can earn.