Mercury Lounge, a coveted nook in the Bowery's lineup of music venues, is usually a sweaty mess during the set of it's headlining acts.
First Aid Kit was no exception, the Swedes packed the place with adoring fans, that was no surprise. The surprise was their limited notoriety, at least in my own musical lexicon. The band is somewhere under the myriad umbrella of Universal Records, and hail from one of the worlds most prolific hotbeds of hip music, both suggesting that the name should at least ring a few bells. Either way, they played a terrific set of pretty pop, full of harmony.
The highlight of the show was hearing the drummer, who remained silent for most of the set, perform an acoustic ballad in the band's native tongue (I think). The sisters (FAK's two front ladies are related) watched from the audience, later asking to have their picture taken as they stood among the fans. The reversal was a nice touch, and a reminder that the stage of such a small venue is barely a separation. "We had nowhere to go" they said of their brief intermission before a more than likely planned encore, but that is what Mercury Lounge is all about: intimacy. It kind of makes you never want to return to the stadiums.
It was their last show in America for a while, so you may not be able to catch First Aid Kit for a few months. Pick up
The Big Black and The Blue instead for a taste of their delicate tunes -
joe puglisi
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Pictures: First Aid Kit at Mercury Lounge
First Aid Kit on Myspace