I hear that you and your band have sold your turntables and bought guitars

LCD Soundsystem and M.I.A. kicked off their tour last night at Commodore Ballroom here in Vancouver.

A few hours before the show, I was walking around Future Shop killing some time, when M.I.A. walks right by me! She walks by and down a CD aisle, I turn around to make sure it's her and, holy shit, I think it's her. I've had a crush on her ever since I saw her shitty dancing in the Galang video. She's walking to me and I think she notices that I'm looking at her fawningly. I ask her if she's Maya (her real name) and she says yes. I told her I'm going to the show tonight and that I really like the CD and hope that the tour goes well. She smiles and says thanks and then says bye.

However, in my alternate universe: I met M.I.A. and she fell madly in love with me and she invited me onto her tour bus where we made out, and now there's gonna be an arranged marriage. Forget Diplo, your mom doesn't want you with a white guy!

Actually it was kinda like Aziz and his M.I.A. story (watch the video).

The show itself was amazing. M.I.A. played for like 45 minutes straight with hardly a break in between songs. She was having a good time, smiling and just showing a lot of energy. Much better live than when she was on Jimmy Kimmel show where the brutal camera work ruined it. She also danced. Really shitty dancing that I love. I think it hits the same area in my brain that causes me to love bad photographs.

The crowd was super into her, even bringing her back for an encore (Hombre). It was the most dancing I've ever seen at a Vancouver show before. Vancouver crowds are known for standing around.

Richard was there, but I didn't see him. He didn't like it that much, but he set himself up for that. The mix was shit, it was just LOUD. Bring ear protection, makes everything sound better. Richard didn't even stick around for LCD Soundsystem which was a HUGE mistake.

LCD Soundsystem is dance music for people who like rock music. Loud dance music with guitars and cute asian keyboard players. Well, only one cute asian keyboard players but James should add more. The drummer is insane, with James Murphy thanking him multiple times. Playing dance beats live on the kit ain't easy kids.

The album is above average, only brought down by the Pink Floyd or Beatles tribute songs that I don't care for. Luckily LCD Soundsystem is well aware that people come to the live shows for the singles and to dance, not to shoegaze to "Never as Tired as When I'm Waking Up". So they stuck to all the good songs (Give it Up, Beat Connection, Daft Punk, Losing My Edge, Tribulations, Movement, On Repeat, Yeah), and none of the "check out my influences" songs (Too Much Love, Great Release, Never as Tired).

They finished the set with a Siouxsie cover and then "Yeah (Crass Version)". If you know me or talked music with me in 2004 then most likely I tried to get you to listen to "Yeah". And if you have, you've probably played it in your room or on your headphones at work and started having a convulsion filled freak-out during the last 5 minutes of the song. That's what it was like live, only much louder and much more devastating, and with 2000 other people dancing and freaking out in strobe-light epliptic fits.

Holy fuck, I danced at a show.