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Peter Bjorn & John XRT Show at Metro 11/12/09 Celebrating their 10th anniversary as a band, Peter Bjorn & John brought their energetic Birthday Tour to the Metro. The band kicked off the set–which featured a generous mix of new, old and rare material–with the laid-back fan favorite, “Amsterdam”, before jumping into “Far Away, By My Side” from their 2005 sophomore album. From there, PB&J delved into their canon of beat-heavy tracks from their most recent album, “Living Thing”. During “Lay It Down”, “Living Thing” and “It Don’t Move Me”, the hyperactive crowd made it was clear that the party was underway by dancing and singing along with the band. In the middle of their recent single, “Nothing to Worry About”, local Chicago rapper, Hollywood Holt, burst onstage and delivered a quick verse, adding a new dimension to the song. Oddly enough, the appearance was met with bewildered looks and murmurs of “Kanye?” among the crowd. Furthermore, this move was an allusion to the “Re-Living Thing” remix album by Mick Boogie and the popularity of Peter Bjorn & John–specifically the album “Living Thing”–within the hip-hop community. Much to the satisfaction of the eager attendees, the band also played “Young Folks” with opener El Perro del Mar. Luckily, the band proved that they are definitely not sick of playing their most popular single–which achieved mainstream notoriety back in 2006–by jumping around onstage with their guests. Likewise, the die-hard attendees also displayed no signs of annoyance at the song as they whistled alongside the casual fans. The band finished their initial set with a rare, epic performance of “Needles and Pills” from their 2008 instrumental album, “Seaside Rock”. Starting out quietly with an assortment of gentle whistling and guitars, the song culminated with a flurry of orchestral noise. For the encore, PB&J closed with a rousing rendition of “Objects of My Affection” from their 2006 album, “Writer’s Block”.

Thankfully, throughout the duration of the show, the aforementioned crowd of avid fans and newcomers to PB&J showed their support of the band’s anniversary party by singing and dancing together. In return, they were given a memorable performance from one of indie rock’s most interesting and diverse acts.

Written By: Bradley Carlson