Rilo Kiley, photo by Will Oliver

On Monday, Sept. 8, Rilo Kiley stepped into the spotlight at New York’s SummerStage for a historic and unforgettable revival performance. In May, after 17 years away from the stage, the pioneering quartet of Jenny Lewis, Blake Sennett, Pierre de Reeder and Jason Boesel reconnected for their long-awaited revival tour, which brought their beloved catalog of golden-age indie classics to stages across the country before finally touching down in the East Coast at the end of August. Taken alongside their Sept. 5 show at The Rooftop at Pier 17, Monday’s idyllic show in the heart of Central Park represented their first NYC appearance since 2008. The band rose to the occasion with a set that went above and beyond early aughts nostalgia.

Rilo Kiley’s SummerStage performance was a rich and rewarding retrospective on the band’s full catalog, featuring selected favorites from 2001’s Take Offs and Landings, 2002’s The Execution of All Things, 2004’s More Adventurous and 2007’s Under the Blacklight, as well as the fan favorite “Frug,” the lone inclusion from their 1999 EP The Initial Friend. Before taking the stage, the band were introduced by comedian Dave Foley, who famously stumbled into the band’s first public show in 1998 and was so struck that he helped fund the recording sessions for their debut. Foley reflected on encouraging the band to change their name and admitted that he was wrong after all.

Highlights from Rilo Kiley’s set included treatments of “The Execution of All Things,” “Spectacular Views,” “Dreamworld,” “Paint’s Peeling,” “Ripchord,” “Silver Lining,” “Portions for Foxes,” the band’s first performance of “Breakin’ Up” since 2008 and a grand finale of “Pictures of Success.” Get an inside look at the show in the gallery below, courtesy of photographer Will Oliver. Find tickets and more information on Rilo Kiley’s revival tour at rilokiley.com.