We Can’t All Have It

tUnE-yArDs @ Pier 54 Hudson River Park 7/14/2011

Do You Wanna Live? / Gangsta / Es-So / Powa / Fiya / Bizness / Real Live Flesh / Hatari / You Yes You / My Country // Killa (with fireworks display!)

tUnE-yArDs “My Country”

In comparison to other tUnE-yArDs shows that I’ve seen, this show was a bit weak — the audience wasn’t as rowdy, the band was slightly out of practice, Merrill Garbus had a bit of trouble with her higher register — but it was still a thrill. Garbus is so on point lately that an off night is still astonishing. She mentioned being a bit nervous about playing to such a large audience, but by the halfway point in this gig, you’d never know it. She’s a natural for this sort of thing: wildly charismatic, huge voice, very theatrical. (This show ended with a fireworks display, which made perfect sense.) I’ve seen her perform enough times to recognize her tricks, and they work every time. I’ve had more fun seeing tUnE-yArDs in small venues, but it’s becoming apparent that she’s going to have to move up the bracket to the big rooms soon. I just hope the next time she plays NYC she books a better space than Terminal 5.

Buy it from Amazon.