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Aug 28, 2023 By Matthew Berlyant Photography by Matthew Berlyant Web Exclusive

When discussing the veteran London-based indie-pop band The Clientele, variety is not a word that comes up often. Since their debut Suburban Light (really a collection of singles released from 1997-2000) in 2000, the trio of guitarist/vocalist Alisdair MacLean, bassist James Hornsey, and drummer Mark Keen have been churning out pleasantly consistent and occasionally breathtaking beautiful indie-pop coated with a coat of shimmering, reverb-laden haze, like modern successors to Galaxie 500, Felt, or even Television Personalities (whom they have covered in the past with their version of “A Picture of Dorian Gray”). Therefore, their brand new album I Am Not There Anymore (their count ‘em 8th full-length on their longtime label Merge and a double album at that) initially came as a bit of a surprise, with a few songs experimenting with (gasp) programmed drum and bass samples, adding to their already alluring sonic mix that includes French horn, cellos, and mellotron.

That said, in a live setting, The Clientele (to fans’ delight) offer far fewer surprises, but go down as smoothly as a glass of cold lemonade on a sweltering summer day. Opening with “Claire’s Not Real” (a song on the new album more characteristic of their previous work) and then launching straight into “Since K Got Over Me” (from their 2005 album Strange Geometry, arguably the band’s high-water mark, and a definite “hit”).

From that point on, they were rolling, highlighting the new album with no less than 8 tunes from it in the short, hour and fifteen minute long set. Their older material was occasionally represented, though, with songs from albums as varied as the aforementioned Suburban Light (“Reflections After Jane,” their most well-known song, was played) and 2017’s Music for the Age of Miracles (“Everyone You Meet”). After a short break, we were treated to a short encore that featured “Can’t Seem to Make You Mine,” not the Seeds song later covered by Alex Chilton, but one of their own beautiful compositions, again from Strange Geometry. While the night offered few surprises, it’s always a treat to have a band as consistently great as The Clientele back in New York, especially given that they have only been back since 2014 and that this is the tour for only their second album since then.