I’ve only seen Page France live a handful of times, but I doubt I’ll ever forget their show at SXSW, no matter how high the number climbs.

Waiting for Page France to set up, I realized the small room had become increasingly busy since I first got there. By the time they started playing, there were more people in the audience than I’d though could fit in there. It was great to see a visual representation of all the progress they’ve made over the past two years.

MP3: Page France - Beehive State (Randy Newman)

Though the band has a new album coming out soon, Michael Nau and co. played it close to the vest by sticking mostly to songs from their Hello Dear Wind and their EPs. The one notable varation was their second song: a quick jump into a cover of Randy Newman-via-Harry Nilsson’s “Beehive State.” It felt like a gift to the audience, and it I hope everyone received it as readily as I did (though I’m sure they were able to keep from smiling like a five-year-old getting a surprise birthday present).