Indigo Girls at the Pageant, 7/21/2012: Review and Setlist

The hits came more frequently as the night progressed, with "Closer to Fine" and "Galileo" predictably receiving the most fanfare. That both songs were successful singles in their time is a reminder that the Indigo Girls were able to sneak a little existentialism and philosophy 101 into the Top 40, and that has to be worth something. A brief encore began with the new song "Share the Moon" and ended with a pass at Bob Dylan's "Tangled Up in Blue," in which Saliers and Ray shared verses with the Shadowboxers' vocalists. They've been covering that song for years, but thanks to the backing band or to the good vibes in the room, there was enough new life in it to appreciate. The same could be said for the songs that came before it.

Personal Bias: I had a good number of Indigo Girls tapes back in high school but never re-bought the albums on CD, so the band's music is stuck in a place and time for me.

I also listened to the live album 1200 Curfews so often that when I finally saw them (in 1997 at the Fabulous Fox Theatre), I remember feeling cheated that Ray and Saliers did many of the same "live" breakdowns, tempo-shifts and stage banter that I knew from the tapes. It was the first time I realized that concerts can be every bit as rehearsed and rote as a school play.

Overheard: "Do you think Novak's is a ghost town right now?"

Set List:

1. "Least Complicated" 2. "Heartache for Everyone" 3. Unknown 4. "Shame on You" 5. "Get Out the Map" 6. "Three Hits" 7. "We Get to Feel It All" 8. "Gone Again" 9. "Feed and Water the Horses" 10. "Shed Your Skin" 11. "Love of Our Lives" 12. "Beauty Queen Sister" 13. "Trouble" 14. "Mariner Moonlighting" 15. "Virginia Woolf" 16. "Chickenman" 17. "What Are You Like?" 18. "Go" 19. "Closer to Fine" 20. "Making Promises" 21. "Galileo" 22. "Share the Moon" 23. "Tangled Up in Blue"