Belle & Sebastian I Want The World To Stop (Live Version)

The Illustrious Chicago Theatre was filled to a capacity as Glasgow's finest indie export Belle & Sebastian took to the stage for their sole Midwestern performance, the eve before the release of their eighth studio album, Write About Love, out October 12.

The band had "kind of a day like Ferris Bueller had," according to lead singer Stuart Mudoch. "Beautiful girl? Didn't happen. Catching a foul ball at Wrigley Field? Didn't happen. Play 'Twist And Shout' in a parade? Didn't happen. My Ferris Bueller day was more like the dummy he left in bed," he confessed.

The Chicago Theatre would have made a fine stop on Mudoch's tour of the City of Broad Shoulders. Actually, he probably snuck back out for a Dream Academy show that night. With its gold-trimmed balcony, Tiffany's stained glass windows, and towering Parisian archways, the theater provided the perfect atmosphere for the ensemble's unique brand of refined indie class.

The audience was treated to an energetic, career-spanning set full of crowd interaction. The band felt right at home in the Second City, hurling signed Nerf footballs into the upper reaches of the balcony, dancing in the crowd, and even pulling members of the audience on stage for a clapping section that evolved into a full-on dance party for "Boy With The Arab Strap." Although their hometown of Glasgow is 3,600 miles from Chicago, the group showed that the two cities were close in spirit.

"The Second City, don't you hate that hint of inferiority? Chicago is the sort of place people live in and get on with it, in New York they show off a little," Murdoch observed. "Same vibe as London to Glasgow, in [that] Glasgow people actually live there," he explained.

Belle & Sebastian's music is overwhelmingly enjoyable and instantly accessible. They always provide a peaceful autumn soundtrack, and the 2010 edition continues in that tradition. Standards like "I'm A Cuckoo," "Step into my Office, Baby," and "The Star of Track and Field" fit perfectly with songs from the newest album "I Didn't See It Coming" and "I Want The World To Stop."

After ending the evening with an encore that included classics "Judy and the Dream of Horses" and "Me and the Major," Belle and Sebastian head East before bouncing back West, looping down to South America en route home through the UK to a three-night stint in their hometown in December. If you're lucky enough to live in one of the cities Belle & Sebastian is stopping in, make sure you get out to see their show.