James, October 2 at the El Rey

I had tickets to see James in 1997, on the tour for Whiplash, also at the El Rey, and the show got canceled the day of. I assumed I would have the chance to see them at some point soon after that but their next tour of the States was on Lollapallooza (the year with Tool, Korn, and Snoop Dogg -- sorry, not enough to get me to go) then they seemed to lose traction over here and effectively broke up in 2001, news that only seemed to matter across the pond. My chance was gone but there was nothing I could do about it at that point. Then, miraculously, they reformed in 2007 and even continued putting out worthwhile music. Their only hits that had any recognition were 15 years ago but luckily that didn't stop them from giving a States-side tour another shot, actually showing up this time. There's no reason that James couldn't make it as big as The Bends-era Radiohead, as Tim Booth is just as good a singer and frontman as Thom Yorke, just that James are more interested in pop songs, even after 10 studio albums, than arty bullshit. Clearly, exceptional Britpop tunes have no place on the radio these days so James keep failing to get a real foothold in the States, and always seem to fall between the cracks when a trend for British music happens (their biggest album, Laid, and the follow-up happening before and after the Britpop invasion of the '90s, then their reunion happening in the wake of the rise of Coldplay). But people still know "Laid," even if that means they assume that James are a one-hit wonder for it. I read that they played "Laid" towards the end of a show just before this one, not as the closer, which is baffling to me, as the show at the El Rey had everyone in anticipatory excitement as the band built up to it, even though the crowd, clearly the rabid fans that James deserve, knew that they had a whole lot of other songs that are at least equal to it. (I was trying to keep track of the set-list by sending it to myself via Twitter but my messages didn't come through so I had to look up the set-list elsewhere but it should be the right one.)
Unkle Bob opened. I was going to get a drink in the lobby with friends anyway but some advice for this or any band: Don't introduce yourself to any audience by calling them by the wrong city's name (especially "Las Vegas"), even if you're joking. Whatever chance you had to win over the crowd is now lost forever. If L.A. crowds weren't so lethargic, you would have been bottled off the stage then beaten savagely.

James' set:
"Drum Thrum"
"Oh My Heart"
"Ring the Bells"
"Waterfall"
"Come Home"
"Hey Ma"
"Bubbles"
"Seven"
"Say Something"
"Don't Wait That Long"
"I Don't Want To Go Home"
"Out To Get You"
"Upside"
"Whiteboy"
"Born of Frustration"
"Sit Down"
"Sound"

"Top of the World"
"Sometimes"
"Laid"