Photo Credit: We All Want Someone To Shout For
Other Lives and Indians played Music Hall of Williamsburg this past Thursday as one of the last stops on their two and half month tour.
Indians, the moniker for Søren Løkke Juul, a singer songwriter from Copenhagen, opened the show and provided the perfect stripped down contrast to Other Lives’ orchestral rock. The Wild Honey Pie recently did a buzzsession with Juul, so I had been looking forward to finally getting to see him play live. Indians, recently signed to 4AD, has been touted as being Copenhagen’s answer to Bon Iver. His album, Somewhere Else, comes out January 29th, and if this show was any indication, he’s definitely going to be one to watch in 2013.
Quickly following the soft crooning of Indians, Other Lives began performing their meticulously crafted music to an adoring audience. Their stage set up was a tangle of wires and a multitude of instruments, all lit by giant, round light bulbs strategically set up to make the show feel both intimate and epic. I’ve seen plenty of performances at Music Hall of Williamsburg, and never has a band so skillfully imbued the venue with such powerful ambience. Their set up, combined with their swirling, atmospheric rock, managed to take us on a whirlwind journey of the senses.
There was a constant flurry of activity on stage, with band members switching instruments throughout the set and lights dimming and brightening with the crescendos of each song. For most bands, this much commotion would lead to awkward transitions, but for Other Lives, who have been playing together for upwards of 10 years, it seemed to be second nature. The fact that they were able to recreate their painstakingly recorded album in a live setting was no small feat! This wasn’t a show you went to and sang the lyrics along with the lead singer — it was a live show that washed over you and made you feel something.
The crowd clearly adored them, having screamed for an encore, and Jesse Tabish’s easy stage banter was a testament to how thankful he was for such an outpouring of support and love. After this tour, the band is going to start recording their new album, and I, for one, could not be more excited to hear what they come up with this time.
