Stereophonics, Henry Fonda Theater, September 16, 2008

Stereophonics join some of their Britpop peers (Blur, Oasis, Travis, Suede, Supergrass, and fellow Welsh rockers Manic Street Preachers) later this year with their first greatest hits compilation. Titled Decade in the Sun: The Best of Stereophonics, it comes eleven years after their first album Word Gets Around which, like the debuts of the aforementioned bands (with the exception of Blur) is still to me their definitive work. So I was more than pleased that they played several selections from their first album such as “A Thousand Trees,” “Same Size Feet,” “Local Boy in the Photograph,” and “Traffic.” But back to current times, this show was one of the last on their tour for Pull the Pin, an album which came out last year in the UK. It’s been a while since the band have toured the US and five years since I last saw them at the Avalon. Since then they’ve had a number one single (“Dakota”), replaced their drummer (one of my favs, Stuart Cable), played Coachella, and added a second guitarist. Even with these changes the band’s sound has not changed too noticeably, but what makes the group stand apart from their contemporaries is singer Kelly Jones’ strong voice. His vocal timbre can single handedly captivate an audience and compensate for any passage of unremarkable lyrics.

Full gallery & set list below.

Setlist

The Bartender and The Thief
Bank Holiday Monday
A Thousand Trees
My Friends
Superman
Doorman
Have a Nice Day
Vegas Two Times
Same Size Feet
Bright Red Star
Devil
Daisy Lane
Too Many Sandwiches
More Life in a Tramp’s Vest
Mr. Writer
Just Looking
Local Boy in the Photograph

Encore:

Maybe Tomorrow
Traffic
Dakota

LINK

Richard Jones’ tour notes and anticipation before Henry Fonda show on their MySpace.