Supporting his latest release, Saturdays = Youth, main brain Anthony Gonzales was backed by three musicians, including The Romanovs’ Morgan Kibby sharing vocal and keyboard duties with him. The show was energetic from top to bottom, despite the venue’s trapped heat becoming almost unbearable.
With plenty of material to pick from, the band’s set included tracks from nearly every era, starting with the opening number, "Run Into Flowers" from 2003’s Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts. They followed it up with their newest single, "Graveyard Girl", which despite having a drum-heavy mix, sounded brilliant. Even with the drummer behind a semi-circle of plexi-glass, he dominated the mix, which almost threatened the entire show, but the wash of synths and guitars managed to overcome it. "Teen Angst" from Before the Dawn Heals Us was spectacular, and over the course of an hour and a half, the band played nearly all of the essential tracks from Saturdays = Youth, including "Kim & Jessie" and "Couleurs", the first single.
Gonzales’ wispy French accent endeared him to the crowd as much as he’s always been in the Boston area, and the crowd gave an overwhelmingly positive reaction to every song. The effects were gorgeous for the most part, and the new material was as exciting as anything the band has done live to this point. Even though it was insanely hot at the Middle East, M83 came out intact and finished off a highly successful show.
