The Low Anthem Appreciation Thread
 

I find it unsettling that there isn't enough adoration directed towards this particular band from these parts, and this thread should serve to mend this shameful situation. Also, I'm kinda bored.

Here's a sample for those with a lacking background:








This is what folk sounds like in the 21th century. Hell, this is what music should be like. Four people standing around a single microphone. These fellows sure can crank out a proper tune, with 200+ added harmonies. Bloody brilliant.

Can't wait for the new album. And Jocie's solo one, the only song from which makes her sound like an American Vyv. And she's an ex-NASA technician. I think this is what love feels like :D In case you are wondering, Cille, I have dibs on her.

I would have expected more enthusiasm. I am disappoint.

Just got the new album, signed poster and outtakes and all, a week before the release. It's bloody brilliant, easily the record of the year. Don't know any coming records that could come close.

i've loved this band for YEARS!!!
first time I saw them was when the opened for lisa at Martyrs in Chicago. have sen them many times since then with Avetts and Joe Pug and at Lolla! Great band! great thread!

check out there take away shows on La Blogotheque. Also a great website for good live street music.

^Their Blogotheque session is great!

Don't be disappoint David. I like them too. I really don't keep up with all of their news, so I had no idea they were coming out with a new record. Heck, I barely recently discovered their Daytrotter session!

^you better get up to date, they'll be on tour in a jiffy. And live they are on a whole new level of awesome.

Yeah, but they aren't coming to Texas... You'd think they'd be well received in Austin.

They're ok. I kinda wanna get into them, but never really did - maybe it will come to me one day.

Heh, a friend of mine went to buy the beady eye album, but because he felt embaressed to not appear intellectual enough for buying that, he picked up the Low Anthom album too :D True story.

^Go see them live. They'll be touring Europe in a jiffy

^I'm embaressed to say I missed them TWICE last summer - first time in Copenhagen, because I was going to the Lowlands festival and knew they were playing there. Then at the Lowlands that sunday morning, lying on my air mattress talking to Marloes just seemed like a much better idea than going to the gig... :oops:

I started writing a review of the gig I attended, then my browser crashed and I went to Spain. Now i'll try again.


In short, it was AWESOME.

Went there a bit earlier, and a wee bit scarily, there were only two other people at the door. But, there was also one member of the band, Jeff Prystowsky, sitting on a bench with a beer, looking at the river, playing the banjo. He seemed to have been doing it all for himself, so I didn't try to bother him (later some people made an attempt and they managed to get one single word out of him, followed by mild awkwardness). Meanwhile, two members of The Head and the Heart, the support band, were skateboarding a little bit down the road, but at that time I had no clue who they were.

So, we went in, I headed towards the selling dude to get me some merchandise. I got a T-shirt and asked for Jocie's solo album, which I couldn't see. The dude went in to ask her if she had some. Then she came out, we had a wee chat and agreed to meet up after the gig to sort things out.

The Head and the Heart were pretty solid, but not much more than that. Interestingly they had some Viennese fans around. I knew that music stopped at the border, but the existence of fans over there of a band that's so tiny that it's supporting an already tiny other band seemed a little bit too much.

Then, for the main attraction. ****loads of instruments, saws, pump organ, horn, trumpet weird cymbal-thingie, guitars, fiddles, clarinets go leor, etc.... In some songs they had a dude who looked like Sean Lennon come on stage, much like their own Spike Edney, to play some stuff. It all sounded pretty damn great, but this is the band's trademark. Simple songs, great harmonies.

They went through most of their songs, including their usual covers (Evangeline, Cigarettes, Whiskey and Wild, Wild, Women, plus another that I couldn't recognise), the majority of quiet ones nicely emphasising the loud songs. By Jove, Boeing 737 can tear an unwary listener's head off if nestled in the right place. What a brilliant song. The standing around the microphone moments were plentiful and always amazing, and I 'discovered' how great Maybe So is, after not paying attention to it for a while.

The audience was pretty good, and we did fill up the place in the end. No obnoxious shouting and ample jumping around when needed.

Afterwards Jocie came looking for me (and another dude) with CDs, and we had some more conversation. She's seriously one of the nicest people in showbiz. She thanked me at least five times for buying her record. I also suggested listening to Vyv to her, based on the similarities between Mary Mary and our favourite cellist's style. So now I'm a proud owner of the signed copy No. 144 (of 1000) of Bed of Notions, which is a pretty damn good album in its own right.

One more thing: the sound guy of Low Anthem is seriously badass. He's like Billy Connolly from Still Crazy, or even surpassing that. Hair, beard and moustache straight from a Rembrandt painting. I want to be like him when I grow up.