LOCAL NATIVES HEADLINE SIDE B OF 102.5 DAY
Date of show: April 1st, 2017 Location: Express Live, Columbus, OH Photos and review by: Nina Martin/StellarPhoto (copy editing by Tori Biggs) It was a lively night to be in Columbus as California indie rockers Local Natives made a stop at Express Live on April 1st to headline Side B of CD102.5 Day. The group has been on the road supporting their most recent album, Sunlit Youth, which was released late last fall. Kicking off their set with "Past Lives", a song off the new album, the band hit the ground running with compelling melodies and a solid balance of up-beat, energetic hits as well as a few slower songs, making a dreamy, hypnotizing atmosphere. Both of the band's lead singers, Taylor Rice and Kelcey Ayer, have an exceptional vocal range, which is greatly exemplified in the numerous harmonies throughout the set. What I personally enjoy the most about watching this band is the way they pour their hearts out into every song of their performance. There is such a genuine passion conveyed when the group plays live. It is obvious that they are all friends and truly enjoy the experience of playing the songs they've created together. Towards the end of the night, the 5-piece indie rockers played a very interesting (and fantastic) cover of Kanye West's "Ultralight Beam". Wrapping up the set with fan-favorite "Who Knows Who Cares", the crowd sang along proudly with every word. Encoring with "Masters" and "Sun Hands" really was the icing on the cake. By the time "Sun Hands" ended almost everyone in the venue was sweaty and hoarse from jumping up and down and screaming the lyrics at the top of their lungs. The build-up and breakdown towards the end of the song is note-worthy as well... such an energetic, vigorous few minutes that are a perfect way to end the show. In the midst of all the touring, Local Natives have also released 2 brand new songs in the past 2 months: "I Saw You Close Your Eyes" (which was also performed) and a very groovy cover of Fleetwood Mac's "Tusk". Both are available on Spotify and certainly worth more than one listen. Setlist for the show was as followed: Past Lives Wide Eyes Villainy You & I Breakers Airplanes Bowery Jellyfish Heavy Feet Coins I Saw You Close Your Eyes Dark Days Ultralight Beam (Kanye West cover) Colombia Fountain of Youth Who Knows, Who Cares Encore: Masters Sun Hands http://www.thelocalnatives.com https://www.facebook.com/localnatives https://twitter.com/localnatives https://www.youtube.com/user/localnativesband https://soundcloud.com/local-natives
