Lord Huron was by far one of my most anticipated acts of SXSW 2011. Captivated by the couple EPs frontman Ben Schneider released on Bandcamp, I’ve been listening to Huron’s tunes for some months, digging the slow burning folk pop sound and impossible catchy melodies. It didn’t take long for me to find Lord Huron at SXSW; their set at Red 7 was the first of forty plus shows I would see over the course of the next few days.
The first show of a days-long festival is not an easy one to play. Fans are anxious but not yet fully engaged. Venues aren’t full. Beers are unopened. Still, Lord Huron did their best to wake up the masses, spicing up the largely folksy repertoire with guitars cranked to eleven. The band is clearly young, and still finding their sound and style; the set was a bit uneven and the group didn’t seem to really hit their groove until the very last song. Still, the promise remains – in Schneider’s voice, in the standing drummer’s vibrant energy, in brilliant songwriting. I’ll catch them the next time they come through town. In the meantime, it’s back to the EPs for me.
