Spoon stopped by the Madison Theater in Covington on Tuesday night on the heels of Lollapalooza, a solid performance with The Roots on Jimmy Fallon (watch the video here) and a handful of tour dates with some band called Arcade Fire. It was their first time in Cincinnati since they played Bogart’s back in 2008.

Illuminated against the dimly lit stage with an acoustic guitar, front man Britt Daniels started off the night strong with an intimate acoustic version of “Me and the Bean.” The band joined Daniels for an echo-soaked version of “Nobody Gets Me But You,” off their latest, Transference, followed by “The Underdog.” I was pretty surprised that they pulled out the upbeat hit so early in the set, but it could have been to liven up the crowd, who seemed somewhat listless from the humidity. It was actually my first time hearing the song performed without a full horn section, so the song seemed stripped down despite the band’s huge presence.

The band ripped through the rest of their set, playing an extended intro to the noisy, reverb-heavy “Stay Don’t Go”, which transitioned seamlessly into “Don’t You Evah.” The crowd especially went crazy for songs off 2005′s Gimme Fiction, including “I Turn My Camera On” and “My Mathematical Mind,” which sounds especially epic live. The 21-song set also included songs off Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, like “Don’t Make Me A Target” and “You Got Yr Cherry Bomb”, and the set ended with “Black Like Me.” Of course, Spoon returned for an encore,performing a couple songs off Transference (the amazing “Written In Reverse” and “Rhythm and Soul”), before closing out the show with “Jonathon Fisk.”

My third Spoon experience was definitely the best. The band played a pretty straightforward set, pulling songs from albums as far back as 2001, which I really appreciated. However – and I think I’ll really take some heat for this from Spoon fanatics – after seeing them twice, the show seemed somewhat predictable. Don’t get me wrong, Spoon is amazing live. But with the exception of throwing in some noise and extending intros and changing the levels around, the band doesn’t stray too far from the record. The band sounds so tight that even when they try to sound messy with all the reverb and echo, it sounds clean. Even Britt Daniels, in his crisp white button down and straight jeans, looks damn near effortless as he coolly howls the lyrics. I know, it’s a weird criticism that the band sounds too good. After seeing them three times in a couple years though, I’m still waiting for the band to really surprise me.

- Caitlin Behle @cutelin

Spoon Tour Dates
09.30.10 – Los Angeles, CA – The Palladium with Cold Cave
10.01.10 – San Diego, CA – SOMA
10.02.10 – Las Vegas, NV – Matador’s 21
10.04.10 – Tucson, AZ – Rialto Theatre with Dale Watson
10.05.10 – Albuquerque, NM – Sunshine Theatre with Dale Watson
10.06.10 – El Paso, TX – Club 101 with Dale Watson
10.08.10 – Austin, TX – ACL Festival
11.10.10 – Rockefeller, Oslo Norway
11.11.10 – Tradgarn, Gothenburg Sweden
11.12.10 – Vega, Copenhagen Denmark
11.13.10 – Rolling Stone Weekender, Germany
11.15.10 – Elysee Montmartre, Paris
11.16.10 – Shepherds Bush Empire, London
11.17.10 – Cockpit, Leeds
11.18.10 – Academy, Dublin, Ireland
11.20.10 – Crossing Border Festival, The Hague Holland
11.21.10 – Crossing Border Festival, Antwerp Belgium