LOCAL NATIVES - KING TUTS 13/11/10

I moustache you a question...

I love it all
So much, I call
I want you back
Back
Back
You back...

Pretty much turned up at Tuts night with zero expectations of what a Local Natives gig would encompass. Except from that annoying niggling feeling I was probably dressed a little too... um... hoochy (?) for such a folky band - vintage leather short-shorts, House of Holland super suspenders, Topshop boots, cropped white T and vintage fur coat. Can you spell taylormomsenmoment?

HOWEVER despite pondering beforehand that perhaps I should have worn my dungarees and farmer Joe hat, it turned out to be a great wee gig.

My friend Carlin and I arrived a little late to catch the full set from the support band, but we did hear the last few songs and evidently we didn't miss much. Snore.

Next came Local Natives, the moustachioed* five-piece from Los Angeles. Harmonising like a chorus of angels (your words I believe, Carlin? Ha!) and playing their wee hearts out. In fact I think that's what struck me most about them - their sheer undiluted enthusiasm for the performance! Every one of them had an expression of intense concentration and emotion almost the entire way through. None of this playing it cool and nonchalant malarkey, oh no, though the same couldn't be said for some of the audience. WAKE UP FOLKS! Maybe it's an American thing, but man, they put 110% into it and it paid off. And the singing! Oh jings, it's so rare to see a fairly small band sing that well (especially in Glasgow). Honest to God, I had chills quite a few times.

I did have a few niggling issues though. They played a fair few slower numbers, which in themselves were awesome. Haunting, lingering music with some stunning key vocals. But they did tend to lull the audience into a bit of a stupor, so that when they came to play more upbeat/uptempo tracks it took a while for the crowd to really get going. It felt a little jarring to be almost serenaded to sleep (in a good way!) one minute, then expected to jump and jive around the next. The jumpy/jivey songs were not QUITE jumpy or jivey enough for me. But good GOD did they try.

If I hadn't seem them live and just listened to the album I'd maybe say they were more of an album band as opposed to a gig band, but then I'd never have gotten to marvel at THAT moustache in the flesh, would I? And that, my friends, would have been a tragedy.

All in all I'd give them a 3.5/5.

And a special GOLD STAR for effort.

*they don't all have moustaches, just one really. But still, it's so epic it counts for at least all five of them.