Aly Spaltro of Lady Lamb Captivates The Echo

Lady Lamb live by Matt Matasci

Los Angeles – With a voice that could move mountains filling every corner of The Echo on Thursday, one would expect the source of these resonant sounds to be of substantial proportions; instead, Lady Lamb leader Aly Spaltro is a young woman of pint-sized stature. Just as Spaltro’s diminutive stature belies her power as a vocalist, the sweet and at-times twee music of Lady Lamb conceals heavier themes within the lyrics. Hailing from New York by way of Maine, the band performed as a three-piece, performing songs from both of their major studio albums, 2013’s Ripely Pine and this year’s Mom + Pop debut, After.

(Best New Bands’ Liz Rowley had the chance to speak with Spaltro prior to the release of After.)

Lady Lamb started off the set with a classic from her proper debut on Ba Da Bing Records, “You Are The Apple.” Sprawling out over seven minutes, the set’s opener was an excellent showcase of Spaltro’s captivating voice and her unique songwriting style. Shifting dynamics nearly every minute, the song was propelled by melody after melody, all of which related back to the song’s central theme. While the majority of the crowd at The Echo was intimately knowledgeable about all of Lady Lamb’s songs, “You are the Apple” was the perfect introduction for those who were unfamiliar.

The manner in which Spaltro pieces together compositions from separate-yet-related song fragments is often reminiscent of Doug Martsch’s approach to Built to Spill tracks. The band never attempts the technical fireworks of the seminal Pacific Northwest band (nor do they need to), but the two songwriters uncannily share affinity for packing hook after hook into a non-linear format.

First single from After, “Billions of Eyes,” is one such song that demonstrates this similarity. The simple drum and two-note guitar riff of the intro harkens back to Built to Spill’s “Goin’ Against Your Mind.” While Spaltro playfully sang the wordless “dah, dah, dah” melody of the verse and intro, Lady Lamb got the crowd bouncing as the song picked up tempo. An organ-like keyboard line gave the song a unique touch of funkiness.

Lady Lamb are at their best when they combine the earthy, natural influence of their Maine upbringing with some punk rock ferocity. One of the highlights from the band’s proper debut, “Bird Balloons,” was a perfect amalgam of this hard-edged attitude and grounded sincerity. Another one of Spaltro’s cut-and-paste style songs, it leads off with a mean bluesy riff and passionate vocals. After traversing through several tempo and mood changes (but always sticking to its motif), the band pummeled the audience with a closing passage that bordered on hardcore punk speeds.

More straightforward sounds were also heard from Lady Lamb, highlighted by their pop anthem “Milk Duds.” The jangling song barely makes it past the three-minute mark and features memorable lines from Spaltro, which reminisce on the age-old theme of lost love.

After performing a handful of songs with her backing band, Spaltro took the stage alone to perform “Sunday Heart” and “The Nothing Part II.” With its heartfelt themes of sacrifice and death, several audience members passionately sang along for the entirety of “Sunday Heart.” As the rest of Lady Lamb took the stage, Spaltro pulled her banjo off its rack, commenting that every other city got way more excited about the banjo than the crowd of Angelenos at The Echo.

The final highlight of Lady Lamb’s set was the simple, layered performance of “Violet Clementine.” A stylistically dynamic song, it veers from its bluegrass influences in the verse to a vocal jazz interlude. The band closed out the intense track with maybe one of the only moments in music history when banjo and synthesizer were able to co-exist in harmony.

Lady Lamb continues their tour in support of After through the beginning of May, with dates in the Pacific Northwest, Midwest, and the East Coast of U.S./Canada. Check the band’s Facebook page for more information.

Photo of Lady Lamb live by Matt Matasci

Matt Matasci

Matt Matasci

Perhaps it was years of listening to the eclectic and eccentric programming of KPIG-FM with his dad while growing up on the Central Coast of California, but Matt Matasci has always rebuffed mainstream music while seeking unique and under-the-radar artists.Like so many other Californian teenagers in the 90s and 00s, he first started exploring the alternative music world through Fat Wreck Chords skate-punk.This simplistic preference eventually matured into a more diverse range of tastes - from the spastic SST punk of Minutemen to the somber folk-tales of Damien Jurado, and even pulverizing hardcore from bands like Converge.He graduated from California Lutheran University with a BA in journalism.Matt enjoys spending his free time getting angry at the Carolina Panthers, digging through the dollar bin at Amoeba, and taking his baby daughter to see the Allah-Lahs at the Santa Monica Pier.
Matt Matasci