Take one of the most musically complex and hauntingly melodic bands around, put them on stage in one of the most intimate and acoustically gorgeous venues in the country, and I don’t know if you can describe it as anything short of a religious experience. Fleet Foxes played to a packed crowd at U of M’s Hill Auditorium Thursday night. The band mixed it up with songs from both their self-titled 2008 debut and their latest release, Helplessness Blues. Highlights of the show included moving renditions of “White Winter Hymnal,” “Mykonos” and “Quiet Houses” featuring the beautiful multi-part-harmonies that have come to define the band’s unique sound, along with cuts off their latest album including “Montezuma,” “Grown Ocean” and “Lorelai.” The ninety-minute plus set closed with rousing renditions of crowd-favorites, “Blue Ridge Mountains” and “Helplessness Blues.” One of the only songs they didn’t play—unfortunately, also the song that was at the top of my wish list—was “Tiger Mountain Peasant Song.” But it’s hard to complain when you see a band not only playing to the crowd so well, but also expressing their genuine gratitude for their fan-support. One thing was clear by the end of the night—there’s little doubt that the band was having every bit as much fun as those of us who were luck enough to attend.
Complete Set List:
The Plains / Bitter Dancer
Mykonos
English House
Battery Kinzie
Bedouin Dress
Sim Sala Bim
Your Protector
White Winter Hymnal
Ragged Wood
Wild Mountain Thyme (Francis McPeake cover)
Montezuma
He Doesn’t Know Why
Lorelai
The Shrine / The Argument
Blue Spotted Tail
Grown Ocean
Encore:
I Let You
Sun It Rises
Blue Ridge Mountains
Helplessness Blues
