Wolf Parade - 8/9/06 - First Ave.

Wolf Parade returned to Minneapolis yet again to support their fabulous 2005 debut Apologies to the Queen Mary. As this was the third time we would be seeing them on the one album, their set was very familiar. To our surprise, they opened with a choice not from the album. I was not sure if it was a b-side or a new one, but it was one they played the last time we saw them at 7th St. Let's call it "I'll Sing You in Songs." The follow consisted of more familiar songs from the album such as personal favorite's "it's a Curse," "Shine a Light," and "Fancy Claps." The band did not seem to have everything together during the first half of the set, taking much time inbetween songs and not giving some of the best songs from the album just representation. They really picked things up during "This Heart's on Fire" and "I'll Believe in Anything" which was definitely the high point of the evening. Sprinkled into the set were a couple new songs, one of which was brought out during the encore and had a tight guitar hook along with pounding drums and swirling keyboards (hey, not too different from the best songs off Apologies). The night ended with an entended version of "Dinner Bells." While seeing Wolf Parade is always fun, I am glad to say I got to see them pre-mainstream indie stardom before they owned the First Ave mainstage.