“I hear a song makes me think of a girl I used to know. I sing along when I hear it on the radio now…”
So begins the ‘prologue’ of sorts, on Everclear’s cover of “Brown Eyed Girl” from their 2000 album Songs from an American Movie Part One: Learning How to Smile. 26 years later at the Independent in San Francisco, the same could be said now of their own songs; the band has come full circle, with a devoted audience of fans singing along to their classic songs.
An Everclear show is, after all, chockfull of nostalgia. Frontman Art Alexakis makes no secret of his past – weaving tales of addiction, struggles with former bandmates, and heartfelt stories of his beloved mother throughout a set of songs that were all at least 20 years old. Alexakis remarked several times about how grateful he was to the audience for showing up to see him and his band after all these years, sharing sweet musings about his experiences living in San Francisco and the love he still feels for this city.
Everclear’s current string of gigs is so called the “Lucky 7” tour because the band has tasked the audience with choosing seven songs to play each night. Before each and every show (and even at the venue, a QR code was displayed on-screen as the audience trickled in), we were encouraged to vote for our favorites. It was an interesting and pretty seamless experience – though we only got to choose from about 20 songs, so naturally it was an exercise in compromise. Where was “Thrift Store Chair?” or “New York Times?” or “Songs From An American Movie Pt. 1?” or “Pt. 2?” I couldn’t help but wonder.
The songs that our Independent audience chose were nonetheless a delight. Two covers were standouts – the aforementioned “Brown Eyed Girl” and another girl – Tom Petty’s “American Girl,” where Everclear forewent the jangly guitar riff in favor of heavier sludge while still maintaining the iconic vocal melody. Another highlight was “Learning How To Smile,” after which Alexakis thanked the audience for choosing it from the list. “That’s one of my favorite songs I’ve ever written. Thank you,” he said. “No, thank you,” several in the audience responded.
I can’t believe I’ve gotten this far into this piece without mentioning the true impetus for my attending Saturday’s show. I love Everclear, don’t get me wrong. But I LOVE American Hi-Fi, who opened up Saturday’s show. They haven’t played the Bay Area in 20 years; someone please tell me I’m wrong. I couldn’t find a record of any shows between 2003 and 2026. Their set was short but sweet, leaning heavily on their self-titled first album, with a couple from their two subsequent records too. The band was in top form; they sounded absolutely fantastic. And of course they closed with their earworm “Flavor of the Weak,” a quintessential pop-punk tune lauded amongst the greats of its era.
American Hi-Fi were contemporaries of Fountains of Wayne, a connection I hadn’t consciously made until frontman Stacy Jones brought up the band’s newest single “Guitar Center.” The song had been a gift to the band from Adam Schlessinger, Fountains of Wayne bassist who died tragically during the early days of COVID-19. And knowing that, you can absolutely hear how much of a Fountains of Wayne song it is – snarky, sarcastic, outrageously catchy, loaded to the gills with musical ear candy – including a gratuitous guitar solo and a curveball key change. You can hear the love American Hi-Fi put into their version of the song, and they are an absolutely perfect fit for it.
In the event you’re curious to delve more deeply into American Hi-Fi’s music, I’ve put together a greatest hits of sorts which includes songs from all five of their albums. You can find that on Spotify and Apple Music here.
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