I'm not sure precisely what I was expecting from Peter, Bjorn & John based on my previous album and radio listening but it was not the dance about performance I was lucky enough to see. The trio treated us to a set full of material from their upcoming Living Thing album which features what felt like an even brighter if a bit less poppy sound on the whole. Notable are some percussive variations from their previous album and some fun surfer rock guitar riffs which helped boost the indie rock crowd off their heels. I assume the album may have a few more keyboard and vocal backings (ie the kids choir sound) which they backed off on for this live performance.
I heard that their set the previous day was plagued by technical difficulties that left the band less than happy, but fortunately at least Peter and John appeared to be having a good time this go around. Seemlessly trading bass, guitar, keys and vocals (and props to their crew on this as well) Peter (decked out in yachting attire) and Bjorn (sporting a leather jacket and some scruffy facial hair) could not have been more of a contrast. As one fan near me said, "Bjorn looks like he might want to kill himself" (perhaps a bit of an exaggeration, though I'm pretty sure I never caught him smiling) and stood quite static with his bass glaring out at the audience (or maybe just being contemplative). Meanwhile Peter took advantage of the packed crowd to lean out among the fans and dance about 50's rocker style, at one point deciding to get cozy and sit out on the speaker with the crowd (now I can say I've been sat on by Peter Morén!) John looked like he would have also liked to dance about the stage but had to settle for boping behind the drums. Overall a clear highlight for me this festival (I now understand why my local radio station raves about them)- I'm so glad I decided to withstand the crush of the crowd for 2 hours to be there!
