Matador hasn’t grown old

She has one of those voices that could melt hearts even if she were reciting the ingredients to a tube of Aquafresh.

Chan Marshall's tunes are so pregnant with emotion, you could fill a maternity ward with all the longing inherent in the Cat Power frontwoman's repertoire.

At a sold-out Pearl at the Palms on Saturday, Marshall began her set by draining the blood from the Rolling Stones' "Satisfaction," rendering it a dry husk of itself, turning a roar into a whisper.

From there, she and her ace backing band gradually added more layers of bluesy guitar muscle and slow-simmering keys to her skeletal tunes, as well as a litany of covers from the likes of Fleetwood Mac and Nico.

Cat Power's performance was one of the many highlights of Matador at 21, a three-day celebration of various acts associated with seminal indie label Matador Records.

Here are some of the other notable moments from the fest's last two nights:

■ The jarring mood swings between Jon Spencer Blues Explosion and Perfume Genius on Saturday. The former lived up to its hyperbolic handle with frontman Jon Spencer alternately sounding like a Southern Baptist minister testifying from the pulpit and an indie rock Elvis, clad in some hermetically sealed leather pants almost as tight as the band's playing. The three-piece excavated rock 'n' roll's dirty roots and shook 'em at the crowd, right along with their derrieres.

They were followed by the papier-mache-delicate ballads of Perfume Genius, whose emotionally charged piano pop was as understated as the Blues Explosion were overwrought.

■ The rock 'n' roll Red Bull that was Superchunk and Ted Leo and the Pharmacists' sets. Superchunk came hard on Saturday night, bouncing across the stage like they were coated in rubber. Their tunes, fast and fat-free, were like jawbreakers: sugary melodies formed a sweet candy coating over a rock-solid core. When they tore through one of their signature tunes, classic indie anti-anthem "Slack (Expletive)," complete with frontman Mac McCaughan busting out some Pete Townshend-style windmills on his guitar, it was easily one of the most heart-pounding moments of the weekend.

Similarly, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists quickened pulses on Sunday, pinning their ears back and straight savaging hardscrabble rockers like "The Stick" and "Woke Up Near Chelsea." The band ended its set triumphantly with a rousing take on Nick Lowe's "I Love My Label," joined on stage by New Pornographers singer/guitarist Carl Newman, turning the song from snide to sincere.

■ The New Pornographers filling The Pearl with soaring multi-part harmonies and bright-eyed pop on Sunday. Newman and singer Neko Case, banging a tambourine to the beat, rendered tunes like "Crash Years" and "Testament of Youth in Verse" stirring sing-alongs. Their tunes were so full-bodied and robust, it was like two bands on stage playing at once.

■ Belle & Sebastian's late, great set on Saturday night/Sunday morning. They made their many hopelessly smitten devotees in the house wait for more than an hour past their scheduled start time before taking the stage, but Belle & Sebastian made up for it with their exquisitely crafted pop, which puts a high premium on attention to detail.

The crowd was exhausted by the time they started, but quickly came to life to the tune of the Scottish group's confessional chamber pop, which was brightened with a string section and some tasty flute licks.

Best of all, they seemed to be enjoying the moment every bit as much as the crowd was, clearly pleased to be a part of the festivities.

"What are you gonna do now that you're all grown up?" singer/guitarist Stuart Murdoch asked of Matador's advancing age. "You gonna stop acting like children? I hope not."

Neither do we.

Contact reporter Jason Bracelin at jbracelin@ reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0476.