07.25.2011 - Bon Iver @ The Murat Theatre
August 10, 2011
The Murat Theater
Indianapolis, IN
I had heard some of Bon Iver’s music prior to the show this evening at The Murat Theater, and I was expecting a low-key evening of good music, but nothing special. This was, after all, a seated show in a nice theater. My expectations couldn’t have been further from reality. This Bon Iver show was, by far, one of the best shows we’ve ever been to. Who would have thought that a guy (Justin Vernon) known for singing in his best falsetto would be the same guy to keep a crowd on its feet, singing, and screaming (in a theater setting, mind you) for over an hour and a half?
Bon Iver’s stage set-up was simple, yet brilliant. Brilliant strips of bright LED’s topped with can-lighting stood behind the band, at times pulsing with the beat of the music as drummers Sean Carey and Matthew McCaughan (that’s right – two drummers on this tour) owned those drum kits. At times, Justin Vernon was down on his knees, fiddling with distortion pedals to get just the right sounds out of the strings he plucked on his guitar. There is just so much to this show, and to Bon Iver’s music in general. Justin Vernon also made the show feel so personal to Indianapolis, sincerely thanking the crowd several times, not just in a "Thank you very much xxx city" kind of way, and mentioning that the label that Bon Iver is signed to, Jagjaguar, is based in Bloomington.
The band thrilled the crowd with every song they played. Of course, they played such favorites as “Flume”, “For Emma”, “Perth”, “Creature Fear”, “Towers”, and saved “Skinny Love” and “The Wolves (Act I and II)”, which included a fantastic crowd sing/scream-along, for a short encore. But it didn’t matter what song this band played, the minute the audience heard the first few chords, screams erupted. There aren’t really words to describe this show – I’m getting chills just sitting here watching YouTube videos of the performance that night. Amazing.
The Rosebuds opened for Bon Iver, and have a really great sound. As a newbie to their music, I left that show pretty jazzed about picking up their album and hearing more. Check them out when you get a chance.
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