Concert Review: Of Monsters and Men

Ok so this isn't going to be a very long review, seeing how I completely fawned over these guys in my most recent album review. I've been to many, many concerts over the years, yet last night was my first time ever going to the Troubadour. For those who've never been, it's a very intimate venue. Basically just a bar with a stage and a small upper floor with a few tables and a balcony. I would imagine no more than a few hundred people could fit inside. This adds so much more to the concert-going experience and it feels like the band is actually performing for you, rather than you paying to see them perform.

When Of Monsters and Men took the stage, they immediately broke into album opener "Dirty Paws" and the uplifting "From Finner". From there they treated their audience to a few new songs that would be featured on the U.S. album release as bonus tracks. All three were enjoyable, but the third new song titled "Mountain Sound" was my favorite with its very upbeat and catchy chorus. After that the band proceeded to play most of the songs from their debut album My Head is an Animal. The highlight of the night had to be "Little Talks", which had the whole crowd dancing, chanting, and singing along with the band as they belted their hit single.

This being their first North American tour, I was skeptical that they wouldn't have perfected their live sound quite yet. However, the band eased my skepticism quickly as every song sounded as good as it does on the album. In between songs, the band would banter with the crowd and were constantly thanking and expressing how excited they were to be in the U.S. The crowd in turn was equally excited to be in their presence. Most people knew the titles and lyrics to every song, despite that the album has yet to be released stateside. It added to the experience that these people liked Of Monsters and Men as much I do. One thing they could work on though was their preparedness. It seemed like they forgot their setlist at times and had to remind each other which songs were next. And for their encore it was clear they hadn't decided which song to play when they took the stage and ended up asking the crowd. Naturally, everyone requested both songs to which the band graciously obliged. This is a very small qualm though and after a few shows I'm sure they'll fix it.