All photos by Autumn Andel.
For someone who has only seen Destroyer live from a distance (behind several rows of crowd on a small outdoor stage at the Pickathon music festival, only a man—Dan Bejar—and his guitar), I had little expectation of Destroyer’s tour kickoff show at the Wonder Ballroom making for a wild Friday night. But judging by the lush orchestral production of Poison Season, I knew to anticipate something more than a scruffy middle-aged crooner with a fretted fingerboard.
Supporting Bejar’s warble, hum, and crackle, six musicians tantalized Destroyer’s elegant pop into the grittier possibilities of a live set. If it wasn’t exactly a savage night at Wonder Ballroom, Destroyer certainly had more people as electrified participants than admiring onlookers. Portland band the Domestics opened the night.
Click the jump for video from the night, and lots more photos!
Destroyer was an eight piece. And even though The Domestics were fantastic, it’s worth noting that one audience member cried openly when he learned that Frog Eyes would not be opening. I’m not ashamed to say that was me.