The band, now fully five members, back what is primarily Krug’s songwriting and, showing up in unusually jovial and chatty form, holding up his drink and toasting us all with a sweet “Cheers!” at the show, I’m here to let you know Spencer Krug is on fire, people.

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Sunset Rubdown began as a solo project for Wolf Parade‘s Spencer Krug but quickly evolved into a full band . The music veers from carnival-esque grandeur to pin-drop-quiet beauty. They are currently touring in support of their newest album, Dragonslayer. Tom Child interviews multi-instrumentalist Michael Doerksen.

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The Echoplex tends to play up its murkiness well—generally, it’s too dark to tell what color your drink is, or if your date is male, or human. Tonight’s show was so dark that Dan Bejar, a.k.a. Destroyer, appeared to be candlelit. It fit. I can’t say for certain what the primary objective was in seating the mostly crazy-eyed and adoring audience in rows right up against the stage. The result was a wonderful, docile sort of intimacy, which was exponentially multiplied by Bejar’s solo performance—he played acoustic versions of songs that on record are often as densely orchestral as this sort of (indie rock? hooky Bowie-esque Spanish guitar balladry? “European Blues,” as he calls it?) music gets.

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