Keep Your Heart Up / The Lumineers at SXSW
Thursday, March 29, 2012 at 7:50AM Words // Scott Pingeton
SXSW got off to a bit of a rough start for me. We rolled into town on Thursday night and walked directly into the belly of the beast. We were totally unprepared for the chaos of 6th Street during SXSW. Our heads spinning, music blaring, thousands of drunk music fans of all persuasions swarming the streets - alcohol seemed the easiest way to assimilate. So we did. The rest of the night was a blur of neon and whiskey. There was an enthusiastic fan imploring me to see Kishi Bashi the following night, some deep conversation with Kyle Hauser (banjo-toting off-duty artist) and a great set from Adam Arcuragi -- but when I finally hit the pillow that night, I wasn't quite sure what to think of the whole thing. It was a lot to handle.
I woke up the following morning, feeling not-great. Drank a few gallons of water, downed some Advil, headed to IHOP for some much-needed breakfast and then dove back into the madness. But somehow, in the light of day with a full night under our belts, it all seemed so much more manageable. The skills of logic and reason still within our grasph we consulted our schedules and decided to check out The Lumineers at the Paste Magazine / Sennheiser day party. As we walked into the cool, friendly and relaxed confines of the Stage on 6th, SXSW finally made sense to me. Within 5 minutes I had seen a few familiar faces from Boston and was five feet from the stage where one of my favorite up-and-coming artists was playing an incredible set. What I realized at that moment is that SXSW was about timing -- it was totally possible, with a little planning and good fortune, to spend an entire day walking from bar to bar to bar seeing great live music. You just had to be in the right place at the right time.
The Lumineers' charm is in their authenticity. Those original live videos of "Ho Hey" that made the rounds however many months ago were charming because it showed a band connecting with their audience through just a simple song with a perfect melody and a heartfelt performance. They were vibrant and electric and completely captured the spirit of live music at its best. I was worried that as the band found success they would polish their songs to a shiny luster and lose the organic, unvarnished earnestness that had been so likeable. After seeing a full show and listening to their upcoming debut countless times, I'm glad to report that that isn't the case. The album (which is excellent, full review next week) is stripped-down and raw -- like the live show, it makes a visceral connection with the listener through words, melody and acoustic instruments. That's usually all you really need.
Here is the band performing "Hey Ho" and "Stubborn Love" at SXSW:
Stubborn Love (sound gets a little better after first few seconds)
Ho Hey
