March wasn’t very kind to Madison. It was technically spring yet the temperatures refused to rise and the snow followed suit, holding firm to the earthen floor. The Badgers were bounced from the NCAA tournament within forty minutes of hitting the court, and anyone (and I mean anyone) who is winning his or her bracket pool is far from “winning.” Alas, April arrived, spring sprung, and with it came Divine Fits.
Last Wednesday evening, the band — co-fronted by indie giants Britt Daniel and Dan Boeckner — was kind enough to make a stop at Madison’s Majestic Theatre. Their set was an awesome no-frills affair, as the group churned out a steady string of tight knit tunes that rocked the crap out of the inner-dad in all of us.
Split Single — apparently Britt Daniel’s new band — warmed up the stage sans-Britt to a pretty barren but welcoming audience. The three-piece represented pure rock ‘n’ roll: the frontman could both sing and scream, the bass player knew the stance, and the drummer looked like he was trying to thump the shit out of his kit. Not unlike Divine Fits, they swapped instruments amongst themselves for a couple of numbers and overall they were just a really impressive opener — yet, I couldn’t help but think the ghost of Britt Daniel seemed to linger over their entire Britt Daniel-less set.
But he wasn’t far off; Divine Fits strolled onto the stage 20 quick minutes after Split Single packed up, just as the Majestic crowd was starting to feel, well, crowded. They wasted little time with introductions, storming right into a romping rendition of “The Salton Sea.” From there the band never backed off, kicking out jam after jam with precision and ease.
Boeckner and Daniel owned the stage, riffing off of one another, swapping guitars and mics, and cracking wise with the fans between numbers. Alex Fischel and Sam Brown, who aided the band by seamlessly blending their small catalog of tracks with half a handful of covers to comprise a full set, held the rhythm section awfully steady. The Fits’ renditions of Tom Petty’s “You Got Lucky” and Frank Ocean’s “Lost” sounded as if the band had written them themselves. And their cover of “Shivers” (originally by The Boys Next Door) was the cherry on top — deservedly the encore ender.
That’s not to say their covers outshone their original material: every Divine Fits song felt like a hit. Whether it was Dan Boeckner dancing like a pop star on “My Love is Real,” Britt Daniel being untouchably cool during “Would That Not Be Nice,” or the full-on force brought by the entire band in “Flaggin a Ride,” the group lived up to their reputation as every indie rock fanboy’s wet dream.
Divine Fits may have simply came, rocked, and left, but that’s just how they roll: everything went as expected, but damn was that bar set high.