the stars were alligned.

My review review of what went down last night at Lincoln Hall is below. I didn't wanna oversnob it and gush on how awesome the live renditions of all the Five Ghost tracks were, but oh my goodness all mighty, were they on fire. They played pretty much the new album in its entirety. And I, personally, LOVED it. When Amy Millan softly cooed "Changes - I've Never been good with change, I hate it when it all stays the same; caught between the gold and the gate, my heart beats again;" I nearly died. Or cried. Or something.

The fucking six man orchestration of nostalgic synth work and throwback keys, electro rhythms and her girly vocals just siezed my broken little heart. And when they played "Your Ex-Lover is Dead," I really did die. At least on the inside. Probably my favorite Stars song ever written, the gentle mass crowd sing along ("You were what I wanted, I gave what I gave. I'm not sorry I met you, I'm not sorry it's over, I'm not sorry there's nothing to say"), broken hearted anthem shook me up. The melodies were so mesmerizing. The lyrics definitely hit a little too close to home. But despite my handful of brews or so into the night, I kept my poker face and just swayed against the brick pillar on the balcony, quietly singing along, tapping my little toes.

But it wasn't all pity cluster fuck broken hearted songs, I was definitely skip dancing my little heart out 89% of the set, scribbling my notes like a fiend. Quite possibly the best show I've checked since Beach House, it was a memorable evening. Too bad the damned Hawks stole the thunder, leaving me with the repetitious "da da da, da da da da da da da da da duhhhhs" instead of my pussy dreamy indie pop jams. Oh well, win some, lose some.

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I feel incredibly privileged to be amongst the few media folk lucky enough to have gotten a sneak peek at Stars’ forthcoming fifth studio album The Five Ghosts. This 11-track collection is the group’s most cohesive and flawless release to date, even trumping out my personal fave, ‘04’s Set Yourself on Fire. Departing from their long time label, Arts & Crafts, Stars funded their album independently and self-released the record on their new label, Soft Revolution. As a result, you can tell the group really took the time to fine tune their weaknesses, and The Five Ghosts is much more synth driven than past efforts, also focusing more on the vocal harmonic chemistry between Torquil Campbell and Amy Millan. The album doesn’t drop until June 22nd, and so far the sextet has been fortunate to avoid any digital leaks. So I can only imagine what it must have been like to witness the musical majesty which unfolded last night at Chicago’s Lincoln Hall as the other 95% of the crowd.

I strolled in a few minutes late just in time to catch the bittersweet poppy gem “I Died So I Could Haunt You.” My favorite track on the new record, I instantly knew this show was going to be a great one. The sound quality was a bit on the quiet side, but was crisp and clearer than ever. The collision of soft percussion, slinky synth work and jittery keys led Millan’s whispery honey dripping vocals into what she introduced as “track four,” (also known as the first single, “Fixed”). Violet and gold hues splashed the stage, and the sold-out crowd politely swayed and bopped accordingly to the next 45 minutes or so of the majority of The Five Ghosts.

Thanking the audience for allowing them to present their new material, Campbell tossed a handful of rose stems and petals into the crowd. Millan assured the full house they would soon return with the second half of the show, with more familiar material, which surely didn’t disappoint. The overall vibes and quality of the performance was much tighter and memorable than their last Chicago date at the Vic a few years back. Highlights included numbers from their full catalogue, including Heart’s “Elevator Love Letter,” Bedroom’s “Take Me to the Riot,” Set Yourself on Fire’s “Your Ex-Lover is Dead,” “Ageless Beauty” and a mass crowd sing-along to “One More Night (Your Ex-Lover is Dead).”

Then, as if the eloquent encore finale “Calendar Girl” wasn’t mind blowing enough to call it a night, Lincoln Hall proceeded to drop their flat screen to the crowd with just enough time to watch the Blackhawks score their overtime Stanley Cup winning goal. It was a good night to be in the city. You might say that for Chicago, the stars were aligned.