Live Review: James, Fresh as a Daisy

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I'M SUFFERING FROM a fun hangover, and James is to blame.

I was just one bopping body in a sold-out crowd that jammed the 9:30 Club last night to see the Manchester lads take the stage. It was a Britpoppy performance that rippled with energy, with verve, with emotion.

It's a show that I never thought would happen.

After two decades of indie stardom, a few mainstream breakouts — "Laid" and "Sit Down," most prominently — and helping to fuel the careers of bands like Nirvana, Radiohead and Coldplay (all former opening acts), James effectively broke up when singer Tim Booth bowed out in 2001.

Now seven years later, reunion rumblings have evolved into a smashing new album and a tour that takes the band to New York tonight and New Jersey over the weekend.

They're in for a kick-ass show. From the first note through the final bows two-and-a-half hours later, Booth and the gang displayed the vivacity of a group half their age but the seasoning to target their songs toward that perfect psychic note.

During their undulating first set, they wowed with the life-affirming glamishness of "Bubbles," soothed and prioritized with "Waterfall" and struck a political chord with the anti-war "Hey Ma."

Long-time fans were treated to deep-catalogue cuts like the shout-punctuated "Come Home," the tension of "Dream Thrum," and the fan-requested "Don't Wait That Long."

The performance was the best kind of time warp: Trumpeter Andy Diagram was wearing a dress. Booth semi-crowd surfed. It was a show that had all the trappings of the '90s, but with a modern twist. It was like meeting long-lost friends, reminiscing about old times, then hearing that they had new stories to tell.

The experience turned a crowd of uptight Washingtonians into a pulsing, shouting mass of flailing limbs, led by Booth's signature snake-charmeresque writhing onstage. By the time Booth let out his final war-whoop on closer "Born of Frustration," we were quivering putty in his hands.

All that quivering leads to quite the headache, though.

So, this two-asprin salute is for you, James. Thanks for the memories, and may your next visit be just as rowdy.

Photo from the Isle of Wight festival in June by Matt Cardy/Getty Images

Here's a video of the band performing its latest single, "Waterfall."