Watch Sway Wild’s Mandy Fer Front ALO On LCD Soundsystem Cover Debut In Santa Barbara

ALO‘s Tour d’Amour XVII is in full swing with two weekends of shows down and two to go. The band returned to SOHO Restaurant & Night Club in Santa Barbara, California on Saturday (January 27), where Mandy Fer of opening act Sway Wild led them through an LCD Soundsystem cover.

The Santa Barbara region is the area where ALO was formed in 1998. The city has been a regular stop for Tour d’Amour since the annual run was established in 2006. ALO tapped Sway Wild — a San Juan Island, Washington-based duo consisting of Mandy Fer and Dave McGraw — to kick off several Tour d’Amour XVII performances including on Saturday night in Santa Barbara.

ALO opened their first of two sets on Saturday with “Room For Bloomin'” off 2012’s Sounds Like This LP. Next came the 10-year-old tune “Undertow” along with “Rare Air” and “Keep On Giving Jane” from the band’s latest album, 2023’s Silver Saturdays. The quartet inserted hints of Bob Marley’s “Sun Is Shining” during the “All Alone” that ensued before working a vocal jam into a cover of Barry White’s 1973 hit “Never, Never Gonna Give Ya Up.”

Longtime ALO pal multi-instrumentalist John Payne, a frequent participant in Zach Gill‘s solo projects, added harmonica to “Possibly Drown” towards the end of the first set at SOHO. The band then went at it alone to close the frame with Silver Saturdays cut “Divine Fall.”

ALO loaded the second set in Santa Barbara with classic material including expansive versions of “Cowboys & Chorus Girls,” “Shapeshifter,” “Shine,” “The Gardener” and “Maria.” Saturday’s “Shapeshifter” featured multiple instrumental excursions through the Turtles’ “Happy Together.”

Mandy Fer emerged after ALO launched the set by pairing “Cowboys & Chorus Girls” and “Sugar” with electric guitar in hand. Fer sang and played guitar on a cover of LCD Soundsystem’s “Dance Yrself Clean.” The song was originally issued on the James Murphy-led band’s 2010 album, This Is Happening. ALO bassist Steve Adams switched to synth bass for “Dance Yrself Clean” while Gill focused on keys, Lebo (Dan Lebowitz) tore a solo and drummer Ezra Lipp held down the beat. Mandy Fer provided banter about “dancing yourself clean” accompaned by Zach Gill during the cover.

Check out footage of ALO and Mandy Fer’s “Dance Yrself Clean” captured by Grunzy Channel below:

ALO closed the second set at SOHO with the beloved “Maria.” The band returned to Silver Saturdays for the “Hot Damn” encore. Tour d’Amour XVII continues on Thursday, February 1 in Chico, California.

Setlist (Compiled by Greg Hoagland)

Set One: Room For Bloomin’, Undertow, Rare Air, Keep on Giving Jane, All Alone^, Never Never Gonna Give Ya Up*, Possibly Drown%, Divine Fall

Set Two: Cowboys and Chorus Girls, Sugar, Dance Yrself Clean€, Shapeshifter > Happy Together$ > Happy Birthday To You£ > Happy Together$ > Shapeshifter, The Gardener, Shine, Rewind, Maria+

Encore: Hot Damn

• ^ – contained elements of Sun is Shining (Bob Marley)
• * – Barry White cover with “spicy hot” vocal jam
• % – with John Payne on harmonica
• € – LCD Soundsystem cover with Mandy Fer on guitar/vocals
• $ – Turtles cover
• £ – for Mason and Cam Keough
• + – contained elements of Tour D’amour and Heartbreaker (Led Zeppelin)