The more things that have changed since the 1990s, the more things have stayed the same.
As Spin Doctors frontman Chris Barron sees it, a recently reignited interest in the sounds and culture of the ‘90s sense of nostalgia also lends itself to a sense of some deja vu.
“It’s cyclical,” Barron said in a phone interview with the Gazette on Saturday before a show at the Bear’s Den in Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino. “I remember being a kid in the ‘70s and the ‘50s were cool. And in the ‘90s, the ‘60s were cool… in the 2000s like the ‘80s were cool. People get to a certain point, and they have nostalgia for something they remember from when they were young.”
As the band delivered their “endless supply of unbelievable material” on stage Saturday night, their funky and freewheeling take on ‘90s rock appeared to resonate with the intimate, but lively crowd for the second consecutive night.
“When you play in a place that’s designed to be played in and really works like that, it makes everything easy. Everybody has good sight lines in the audience, and you feel like you’re in good, close contact with the crowd. And the communication between the band and the crowd is great, and that only helps the music,” Barron said.
The band made sure to change up a decent portion of their setlist from the previous night’s performance, swapping out seven different songs from the first night to the second.
Over the course of the approximately 90-minute performance, the band presented a wealthy cross-section of their catalog on stage with the bulk of the set culling from their 1991 debut album “Pocket Full of Kryptonite” and their most recent studio effort “Face Full of Cake,” which was released earlier this month.
It was no surprise that the newer material appeared to blend and flow seamlessly with the more vintage Spin Doctors material.
“There’s a fun and a lightness and an intensity about them,” he said.
As Barron sees it, there are a lot of similarities between how the songs came together in the studio and how they easily translate to the stage.
“We were just pounding out these songs and we went back to that analog training that we had where we were just nailing these songs in, one, two and three takes. So the record is very fresh and the 20th Century chops of this band really kind of came to bear,” he said.
While Barron jokingly admitted on stage that it wasn’t “entirely clear what I’m doing here,” his presence was defined as he commanded the stage with whimsical moves such as spins, microphone stand drops and meditation poses while delivering his vocals.
While the band is best known for the commercially accessible “Two Princes,” their tendency to partake in long, extended blues and funk-inspired jams is still as much a part of the band’s DNA on stage as it ever has been.
Bassist Jack Daley, the newest member of the group, was locked in with his rhythm section partner, founding member Aaron Comess to provide the foundation for guitarist Erick Schenkman to deliver his jangly and fuzzy guitar work with ease.
Comess would usher in perhaps one of the most anticipated moments of the show — performing the classic drum fill to kick off “Two Princes” — a song that Barron wrote when he was 19 years old and one of the first he brought to the band.
“If I’d known then exactly what it was going to be like, I would’ve been psyched,” Barron said.
He vividly recalled hearing the song’s central phrase “just go ahead now” while talking to a friend’s brother about a girl, which then prompted him to subsequently go home and begin to write the rest of the lyrics.
“I was like, ‘That’s stupid,’ and then I was like, ‘I’ll finish it and see where it goes,’ but I’m glad I finished it.”
In the 34 years since the song was released, “Two Princes” has remained not only a setlist staple for Spin Doctors but continues to endure as the band’s signature song.
While their signature hit will be a part of their setlist as they prepare to embark on a summer tour with fellow 90s acts Gin Blossoms and Blues Traveler, the opportunity to still perform the song for audiences all these years later is not lost on Barron.
“Spin Doctors is my life’s work and is the culmination of everything I’ve ever done. I’m happy to (keep the band going) because I love these songs … I love our fans, I love making records with (my bandmates) and I think everybody else feels the same way.”