r/thenewpornographers

Went to the LA show and it was good. The setlist was great. The Former Site Of was a highlight.

But that said, something felt off. I think it’s the rotating nature of the band players but aside from Carl, who here is actually an OG member of this band? In some ways, it felt like a NP cover band. They hit the notes but there wasn’t the passion and excitement of a band who made these songs. They seemed tired and weary and even though they played well, it just felt like they were going through the motions. I love these songs but just wasn’t as moved by them playing them as I wanted to be.

Anyone else catch them recently and have those feelings or am I just off here?

Great show, landed in the front room. Will Scheff was great.

New album’s been out for a while, so time to fire up the song-by-song ratings for this one!

“Great Princess Story” is track 1 — the first song — on The New Pornographers’s most recent album, The Former Site Of.

Here's a link to the song.

• How do you feel about “Great Princess Story”?
• Any favorite lyrics?

How would you rate it out of 10?
1 is terrible, 10 is amazing (decimals allowed, not required)

Note: Comments that don’t include a number vote won’t be factored in. Scores higher than 10 will be counted as a 10.

I'll close the poll in about a week.

Results

Great Princes Story: in progress

All New Pornographers song-by-song results

Always fun spending the evening with my favorite band.

Checking in from the Denver (Englewood) show on a snowy Tuesday night.

I’ll admit I was among those who feared Neko’s absence would be a drawback. But, no worries, the band sounds better than ever. 

A key reason is new drummer Joshua Wells, who is nothing short of phenomenal as a musician and a stage presence. He’s stuck behind his four-piece set, but he moves more than all the other band members combined. I say that with all love for a super-tight band that is all business on stage. Wells is manic, tossing in all kinds of fun touches without interfering with the cleanliness of the songs. He gives the band a consistent stage punch I haven’t heard in a while. 

Jess Nolan, the “Neko replacement,” is fantastic. She’s not as energetic as Neko, but she more than covers Neko’s vocals and plays a half-dozen instruments. She’s the perfect complement to Kathryn Calder, the ideal team player who modestly delivers dozens of highlights every show.

I’m thrilled the band has just added two more Colorado dates later this summer. See you then!

April 27, 2026 @ El Club in Detroit. Great show with a good sprinkling of songs. We were right up front and El Club’s sound isn’t the best but my perception was that the sound was mixed more favorably for the new material since the more maximalist early stuff was kind of muddy, but we were not optimally placed for sound so who knows. Plus, I’d been waiting for a repress of The Slow Wonder for a long time so it was nice to finally pick that up

Another great show! The two days I’m in town and there’s a late season snowstorm. Fortunately we made it just in time for the show. It was nice to see them perform The Former Site of, and I got to tell Kathryn how much we enjoyed the show as she graciously gave me John’s setlist. Now back to Michigan to see Bejar solo acoustic tomorrow! I am a lucky fella