I saw the Hold Steady last weekend, and they put on a pretty good show, but what really impressed me was the set by Thunderbirds Are Now!, who opened the show. (The Constantines, who played in-between, were largely forgettable, and I continue to hold the opinion that they are extremely overrated.) They were musically tight and energetic without coming across as phony, plus they had the songs to back it up. So why wasn't anybody going crazy for it except for me? This was probably the best indie rock bill Madison has seen all year -- three prominent, national touring acts, the opening two of which have each recently played headlining shows in town -- and nobody could get up for the loud, beat-heavy movement of TAN! because they were the first band up. Weird.

Relatedly, I saw Murder By Death at a surprisingly packed show last night, and openers the Life and Times made MBD look like a ten-year-old's birthday party. I hadn't heard anything by them before, but they have some connection to Shiner, and it shows -- also a bit of the Hum and Cave In sound in there, too.