Los Angeles – Along with his two backing mates, Villagers head-honcho Conor O’Brien brought his lyrically thoughtful and instrumentally lush folk rock to the friendly confines of Los Angeles’ The Echo. The band recently released its third full-length record, Darling Arithmetic, this April on Domino Records. While United States audiences are just now beginning to catch wind of the introspective Irish band, they have quite the following; Darling Arithmetic shot to the top of the Irish charts upon its release this year.
Villagers’ bourgeoning popularity in the US was quite apparent at the show, with audience members reciting lines with such conviction that at times, it even took the band by surprise. Friday’s show was the second of two dates in Los Angeles, with the first appearance on Thursday evening at The Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever supporting Patrick Watson. As the show was held a bit earlier than usual, O’Brien teased that he was very thankful all the fans were able to arrive to the gig on time, poking fun at the city’s notoriously hellacious traffic.
The set started out quietly enough, with the lovely ballad “Dawning on Me” feeling all-the-more sincere every time O’Brien would gaze out towards the audience with his piercing blue eyes. Darling Arithmetic is a stripped down, mostly acoustic affair compared to its predecessors; it was no surprise that this iteration of Villagers sported a simple line-up of guitar, keyboards, drums, and occasionally a horn. Villagers’ sound falls somewhere in the sonic spectrum of Grizzly Bear’s electronic-infused folk takes and the ultra-sincere acoustic yarns of Bright Eyes.
After the first few slow songs, the band upped the pace a bit for the lilting “So Naïve” – described by O’Brien as “a meditation song.” The guitar patterns have a hypnotic quality that is ideal for inner examination, and lines like “I believe I am part of something bigger / So naïve but I guess I’ve got it figured” perfectly contrast hopeful idealism with jaded self-awareness. Over a stirring keyboard drone, O’Brien waxes existentialist: “When the one thing you live for / Is the one thing you lack / You say ‘How did I get here? Am I ever gonna get back?’”
With the exception of “Memoir”, a song about prostitution, the lyrical themes in Villagers’ set seemed fairly broad and universal. However, towards the end of the band’s set O’Brien made it clear that much of Darling Arithmetic is rooted in the struggle of the LBGT community – particularly his experiences growing up “different” in a conservative Irish community.
The band’s most recent effort chronicled this struggle for equality and the fight against intolerance and it has quite a bleak outlook; if it had been written and recorded later in the year, after Ireland became the first country in the world to legalize same-sex marriages through a popular vote, perhaps there would have been just a glimmer of hope. O’Brien recognized this fact before launching into the powerful one-two punch of “Hot Scary Summer” and “Little Bigot”.
The encore was a bit of a nod to longtime fans of Villagers, with O’Brien taking the stage alone to perform the title track from his debut, “Becoming A Jackal”. The audience proved their mettle by singing in unison with O’Brien, not just having every word memorized but also showing the ability to provide the haunting counter-melodies of the chorus.
Villagers have several dates across the globe this summer with stops in the United Kingdom, United States, and throughout Europe. Check the band’s tour page on their website for tickets.
Matt Matasci
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