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| The Head And The Heart |
Sunday was at least my fourth time seeing The Head And The Heart have made its toe-tapping campfire dance songs get better and better each time.
The Waiting Room Lounge was sold out on Sunday night, and while I've been there for many a sold-out night, I've never seen it packed up against the stage like that. And I've never heard a crowd go that wild for a band, especially a new band who was on its first ever headlining tour.
They sing songs about reading good books, playing music and enjoying the good life. "Heaven Go Easy On Me" personifies these themes the most (and carries the band's name in its lyrics) with the line "Don't follow your head/Follow your heart."
From the first song, the crowd knew the words and belted them out. It reached a crescendo with the end of "Rivers And Roads" where the band's harmonies and the crowd's shouts were so thick that I got chills down my back.
"Lost In My Mind" was the biggest number. From the first words, the crowd was into it and opening band Thao + The Get Down Stay Down jumped onstage to make for 14 performers.
Another highlight was the encore, which started with Josiah Johnson and Jonathan Russell performing "No One To Let You Down" and ended with the whole band performing "Down In The Valley." (Watch video.)
Only one part of the show was unfortunate. It was short. But that's no surprise considering the band has one album and a few new songs, which is what Mumford & Sons ran up against at this summer's Stir Concert Cove show.
Wait until this band has another album under its belt (you shouldn't have to wait long... they already played a bunch of new tunes on Sunday). You'll see them rise even higher, taking a course similar to Mumford or The Civil Wars.
They're incredibly talented, somehow able to take folk songs and make some into something you'd dance to and others that you'd be comfortable singing at church with a lot of other pretty voices. I mean, if my 2-year-old nephew knows the band well enough to say "rivers and roads" repeatedly whenever the band comes on, they must be doing something right.
They were on of my favorites at SXSW earlier this year and I can't wait to see where they go. Should be a fun ride, especially if crowds keep loving them like this.
Setlist and video come after the jump.
Setlist:
"Cats And Dogs"
"Couer D'Alene"
"Ghosts"
"Honey Come Home"
"When I Fall Asleep" *
"Heaven Go Easy On Me"
"Grandfather's Charm" *
"Lost In My Mind"
"Winter Song"
"Sounds Like Hallelujah"
"Rivers And Roads"
ENCORE: "No One To Let You Down"
"Down In The Valley"
- Songs marked with * were new and don't have official titles yet.
Don't know how you could do a review of this show without talking about the two openers, The Devil Whale, and Thao and The Get Down Stay Down. They were both impressive in their own right. The Devil Whale reminded me a little of Dr. Dog (another band I love a great deal), and Thao was just incredible. The energy in that girl is simply amazing. I had never heard any of these bands until last night, but I was definitely blown away by all three. I love it when bands look like they're having a good time performing instead of just going through the motions. This was definitely one of those shows. So glad I didn't miss this!
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