Belle & Sebastian

Sunday, September 28, 2014

Better Than: Staying home, to paraphrase everyone's favorite Glaswegian sextet, and playing with yourself.

"We were here! Where were yooou?"

Last night, the five guys and a gal of Belle & Sebastian finally graced a stage in the Sunshine State after a nearly two-decade wait for "our first gig anywhere in Florida!"

Of course, though, the Scottish outfit's impish bandleader Stuart Murdoch attempted to shirk responsibility for this 18-year delay by playfully passing off the blame to Miami's notoriously tardy music fans.

See also: Belle & Sebastian on the Next Album and "Accepting That We're a Twee Pop Band"

But shockingly, the Fillmore Miami Beach crowd was actually quite prompt. So Murdoch's argument floundered, and he bashfully shrugged, almost snickering, "Oh well, we've only been going for nearly 20 years!"

Yet the friendly fan ribbing was not over. "I see some of you were a lot younger when you first listened to Belle & Sebastian," he teased. "But then again, some of you weren't, because I notice there's quite a lot of kids here.

"See," Murdoch laughed, now taking a shot at his band and himself, "we're still hip!"

Last night in Miami was also, as the Belle & Sebastian bandleader noted, "the first gig of our new tour."

And like many B&S shows of the recent past, it began with the lovely instrumental, "Judy Is a Dick Slap," followed by a string of fan favorites, from "I'm a Cuckoo" through "Expectations," "If She Wants Me," and "Funny Little Frog."

But then, broaching the exciting subject of a new album, Murdoch announced a fine surprise, with a flourish of sarcasm. "We have been writing some songs recently," he revealed to cheers. "So we're going to play a couple for you just now. And hopefully, it doesn't ruin your evening."

See also: Five Signs You Might Be a Shitty Guitarist