Nada Surf Let Go at HOB SD

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Just got back from the Nada Surf show at HOB. Hello awesome. Set list first and then the details/photos..

Nada Surf
HOB San Diego
3/18/08

Encore:
Blizzard of ‘77
Blonde on Blonde
Always Love
Blankest Year

(Matthew Caws of Nada Surf - nice hat)

So this was the 5th time I’ve seen Nada Surf. Twice at the Casbah, once at SDSU Open Air for Indie Jam and now twice at HOB. The great thing about them, especially for these shows in a larger venue, is that no matter how big a crowd they are playing to, they somehow make the show feel intimate. I think that has a lot to do with Matthew Caws’ stage personality (which doesn’t seem to change off stage either as I have found him to be super friendly even off stage). Nada Surf just finished up a few days in TX at SXSW (missed all of their shows there, grrr) but they did not seem any worse for the wear.

(The mirror behind Matthew)

They played a long set - about 90 minutes and mostly covered material from their last three albums, with a couple of old faves thrown in for good measure. San Diego has been a Nada Surf town for years now; mostly through the exposure they get on KBZT. Matthew even acknowledged it and gave a shout out to the station and Hal. Nice. The fans were attentive and singing along - even to the new material. Matthew totally encouraged the audience participation. Before “Inside of Love”, he directed us to do what I like to call the Indie Rock Sway and asked us to clap during the chorus. It was awesome to see everyone in the crowd sway, clap and sing along to such a great song.

(Matthew makes a joyful noise)

(The mirror behind Ira and his drumkit)

Daniel was a little less animated, as he mentioned he somehow hurt his back. But he was still great to watch on stage and smoked (as usual) and drank his Stella during the set.

(Daniel Lorca of Nada Surf)

The encore was great. “Blonde on Blonde” is a crowd favorite and everyone sang along to “Always Love”. Before “The Blankest Year”, Matthew again asked for audience participation. We all knew what he wanted us to sing...."Oh, f**k it, I’m going to have a party”. Well, that’s actually what happened on stage during the song. One kid jumped up there (encouraged by Daniel) and surprisingly enough security was chill so the next thing you knew, a ton of people were on stage and the mics were even taken over. Complete and utter madness.

(The crowd on stage during “Blankest Year” )

At some point, one of the fans picked Matthew up and started swinging him around. That could have been bad, but it all turned out okay.

(Matt gets picked up by a fan during “Blankest Year” )

After the band walked off stage and the crowd dispersed, I saw the first guy that jumped up on stage and he happened to get a set list. (Good for him!)

(The first fan that jumped up on stage with his set list.)

So yeah, a good show all around. View all the photos here. Also check the blogs of my sisters in rawk - Natalie and Rosey both had photo passes as well, so I’m sure they’ll post them later.