Multiple-night residencies have become an a la mode currency for artists who have the pulling power to fill arenas, yet still prefer to sweat it out within touching distance of the faithful. For LCD Soundsystem, that means a weeklong takeover at Brixton Academy in celebration of their 20th anniversary, with ringleader James Murphy, this century’s pre-eminent disco evangelist, opting only to rest on the fourth, not seventh, day.
Murphy’s reputation as a generational mouthpiece has taken a few knocks in recent years, chiefly the result of his vacillation between relatable world-weariness and questionable grand gestures: attempting 20 dates in New York during last winter’s Covid spike, shilling for crypto, or reversing course after an extravagantly ballyhooed retirement.
