FIRST AID KIT | LIVE REVIEW
St. David’s Hall, Cardiff, Thurs 15 Jan
The phenomenon of depressing pop joy is still growing strong with First Aid Kit. Picking up the mantel from the likes of Morrissey and Leonard Cohen, the melancholy Stockholm sisters Johanna and Klara Söderberg belt out the most unique, blues-inflected country pop anyone has heard in the last 20 years.
Having come a long way from their humble YouTube beginnings, First Aid Kit are now one of the most critically acclaimed bands of the last few years, and one enjoying the luxury of an ever growing audience. Touring off the back off their new album Stay Gold, they sauntered into Cardiff dressed in their shiny boots of gold.
Klara’s vulnerable vocals proved haunting, especially when harmonised with her sister Johanna in songs like Waitress Song and Stay Gold. After listening to their darkly romanticised paeans to America and its attendant culture, you almost want to jump out of your seat, buy a one-way ticket to New York, travel along route 66 and get your heart broken. These feelings of fantasy culminate with their rendition of Simon & Garfunkel’s America, which almost rivals the original for pure heart.
Although St David’s Hall, whose acoustics were designed with orchestrated performances in mind, was packed, the atmosphere was a little lacklustre, with the crowed confined solely to their seats. That said, this forced you to sit back and really take in the music in a more focused fashion, hearing harmonies and musical flair that you wouldn’t otherwise. And even if I yearned to be swaying on my feet with a pint in my hand, letting the music flow through me, the gig was one of the finest and most introspective musical experiences I’ve been a part of in recent months. I left pleasantly surprised at First Aid Kit’s musical range, which is – for lack of better words – as grand as the Grand Canyon.
words JAYDON MARTIN