LIVE REVIEW: On MJ Lenderman and brushing aside high expectations
The indie rock star was at the top of his game in front of a packed El Club in Detroit.
During the biggest year of his professional career, MJ Lenderman could teach us all a thing or two about going with the flow.
Following up one of the most adored indie rock albums of 2022, Boat Songs, with an even more critically acclaimed album, 2024’s Manning Fireworks, the 25-year-old Lenderman has quickly positioned himself as a natural candidate for Gen Z’s “voice of a generation” with his thoughtful, humorous lyrics and insights on modern masculinity.
So, while it shouldn’t be particularly surprising that Lenderman’s live show steers away from classic rock and roll stage performance tropes he was exposed to as a Guitar Hero-worshipping child, there’s still a lot to love about Lenderman’s stoic delivery and zen-like control of his Fender Jazzmaster.
You also get the sense that when you’ve got songs like he has, you let them do the talking, which is what Lenderman did during an intimate performance on Oct. 18 at El Club in Detroit, a wonderful venue we likely won’t see him perform at again.
On top of the success of his past two solo albums, Lenderman has seen his profile rise over the past couple of years behind the success of the band Wednesday, an indie rock outfit he plays guitar in that relies on some of the keen suburban lyrical insights of his solo work; and his contributions to indie rock megastar Waxahatchee’s critically-lauded 2024 album Tigers Blood.
While the myriad features, cover stories and think pieces championing Lenderman furthering of a “dude’s rock” ethos haven’t come without some backlash from critics confused about his sometimes patchwork lyrical choices, use of non sequiturs and more smoothed over production on Manning Fireworks, the increased visbility made my decision to get in line to purchase tickets for the show back in July an easy one.
During the show, Lenderman (real name Mark Jacob Lenderman) acknowledged the next time he’d be in Detroit would be for a performance in May at the Masonic Cathedral Theater — news he delivered after a fan mumbled something about the venue’s relatively narrow confines being too small for an artist like Lenderman.
Hearing the fan’s objection to the venue’s size, he interjected with a playful “WHAT?” you respond with when someone isn’t speaking up loud enough while simultaneously assuring them you heard the sentiment they were trying to express.
When Lenderman informed fans about the show, there was a sense of “we’re still figuring it out” to his explanation about deciding which venue to book for the band’s stop in Detroit. While it’s one of those big, difficult decisions one makes in determing a career trajectory, you get the sense Lenderman can count adaptability and rolling with the punches among his desirable traits.
At another point in the show, band member Xandy Chelmis informed the rest of the band a string broke on his fiddle, limiting his ability to play the instrument on Manning Fireworks standout Rip Torn.
As audience members produced a slight collective groan over the news, Lenderman quickly shook off the setback and posed the question, “Cant’ we just do it on pedal steel?” Boom. Everything is fine again. Another common Lenderman W.
Those moments, along with some information he shared about how fans could support the hurricane relief efforts in and around his hometown of Asheville, North Carolina, were about all the stage banter Lenderman offered during the show, which included a performance of Lenderman’s excellent new song Pianos from a compilation benefiting hurricane relief efforts.
Instead, the budding rock star had command of his audience with a focused performance that beefed up the sound from his recorded output with help from his outstanding backing band, The Wind.
The performance also revealed how easy this all seem to come to Lenderman, whose combination of abstract lyrical choices, references to sports and pop culture and humor aim to lower the stakes on what are often emotionally-charged character studies and subjects like power dynamics and relationship expectations.
From my vantage point near the first row — an unintended choice, I assure you, but a nice surprise — nobody was moving around in between songs. Instead, fans jockyed for position to get a better view and shout along to Lenderman’s one-liners in unison, including Boat Songs standout Hangover Game’s famous refriain of “I like drinking, too!” and Manning Fireworks gem Wristwatch’s “I’ve got a houseboat docked at the Himbo Dome!”
The solos Lenderman and The Wind lead guitarist Jon Samuels delivered created a Neil Young-esque vibrato, bringing an exponential southern-fried dimension to some of his most popular songs, including every song from Manning Fireworks. The combo’s fret work also helped elevate Lenderman’s lesser-known material, including Inapropriate, a minute-long, lo-fi interlude track that was transformed into a jam highlight of the evening.
Another bright spot came as the band closed out its encore with some help from opener Ryan Davis & the Roadhouse Band, presenting a cover of Warren Zevon’s Werewolves of London, the second Halloween-inspired song of the evening after performing deep cut Basketball #2 from early-career single Lucky.
Four influences have been brought up consistently and loom large in describing Lenderman’s creative inspirations: David Berman, Jason Molina, Bill Callahan (Lenderman and co. also covered Smog’s 37 Push Ups) and the aforementioned Young.
While taking cues from some of rock and independent music’s most untouchable figures might seem like you’re setting yourself up for unreasonable expectations, Lenderman’s performance solidified he is a case study in pushing forward a genre that is in desperate need of new perspectives.
Does this unique mix of respect for history, insight, self-deprecation and ability to shred create an impossible standard for a steel-eyed hoops head taking the reigns as Gen Z’s Neil Young or a voice of his generation? Maybe, but after seeing him live, I’ve got to believe he’ll figure it out as he goes.
I really enjoyed this article. Well written.