LCD Soundsystem - The Long Goodbye: LCD Soundsystem Live at Madison Square Garden (Cover Artwork)

LCD Soundsystem

The Long Goodbye: LCD Soundsystem Live at Madison Square Garden (2014)

Parlophone/Warner Bros. Record


When a band goes on a farewell tour they tend to milk it for all its worth. While some bands can pull this off, others just leave you shaking your head and saying to yourself, "shut it down already" Thankfully one of those bands that had the good sense not to stretch their farewell into years was LCD Soundsystem. Shortly after the group's This is Happening album came out in 2010, lead singer James Murphy announced the album would be their last and they would be closing up shop in 2011.

The group played their final shows in April 2011 and documentary crews were on hand to chronicle the final 48 hours of LCD, which was then presented in the film Shut Up and Play the Hits. For those that didn't fork over the money to see the movie in theaters, they can relive the whole experience through the live album The Long Goodbye: LCD Soundsystem Live at Madison Square Garden/

Live albums are usually a hit or miss for some bands with some of them just sounding like they were just a re-recording of albums, while the successful ones are make you feel like you are truly at the concert experience the show. Cliches aside, The Long Goodbye successfully encompasses everything that is right about a live album and highlighting the aspect that made the band so special, seeing them live.

The release is full of the group's hits like "Daft Punk is Playing at My House," "Drunk Girls," and "All My Friends," that pack an enormous amount of energy thanks to the live band and group of energetic backup singers. Murphy also throws some deep cuts in there like "Us v Them," that show you that Murphy and gang can make a nine minute song danceable all the way through.

Clocking in at a little over three hours, this album is a bit on the long side, but if you are looking for an experience of a full fledged concert, you will be cheering all the way through even as Murphy finishes the set with his magnum opus "New York, I Love You but You're Keeping Me Down."