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When Elbow’s lead vocalist Gus Garvey grew up in the mid-70s, his nursery rhymes before bedtime weren’t the traditional stories most kids grow up with. Instead, they were the metaphor drenched, surreal stories that only Peter Gabriel could conjure up as he led Genesis. It’s no wonder that by the time Garvey reached adulthood, the imprints of Gabriel and Genesis were all over his musical statements, along with other prog rock bands like King Crimson.

Opening for modern day troubadour Pete Yorn, Garvey, along with guitarist Mark Potter, keyboardist Craig Potter, bassist Pete Turner, and drummer Richard Jupp took the stage as the band Elbow in Chicago to a sold out crowd. Indeed, their was just as much hype generated from the Manchester imports as there was for the headliner, thanks to their resurgence of a genre that hasn’t really been covered since its original wave. In one sense, such an artistic blend of the above influences (along with a little bit of Radiohead’s “OK Computer”) made for a refreshing break from the norm in pop music. On the other hand, the group did appear sluggish at times, and occasionally lost their connection with the audience during a few overindulgent improvisations. 

Elbow kicked off their set in Chicago with “Any Day Now,” followed by “Red,” which are also the first two tracks off their V2 debut “Asleep in the Back.” Both pieces set up an ethereal vibe with a giant screen in the back flashing subdued psychedelic tapestries. Songs like the “Powder Blue” and the imagery heavy “Scattered Black and White” also made an inventive transition to the stage, although it was “Newborn” and their finale “Scattered Black and Whites” that made less of an impact. “Newborn” particularly lagged as Elbow took the seven-minute studio version and stretched in an additional couple of minutes. If their improvisational majesty reached the heights of their earlier performances (especially “Red”) that would have superb, but instead the group chugged on with a minimal amount of ingenuity. “Scattered Black and Whites” is not known for packing much of a punch as it fades out the record, and unfortunately in concert it also appeared stale.

Despite the flaws, there’s no doubt that Elbow adds a lot of necessary factors to the modern era of music. Granted, a lot of their material lacks the accessibility needed to bring them a major smash hit, but their current fan base seems loyal enough to support them anyway. The only thing I’d like to see Elbow improve on is their tendency to coast with no direction, pushing a song to its absolute brink without making a definitive statement. If they can keep their creativity productive, then the hype will have been worth it and the band will introduce their sweet art rock stylings to a new generation of listeners.