Lower Dens @ Songbyrd Music House [DC] - 2/14/2020
Lower Dens at Songbyrd (Photo by Mauricio Castro)
There’s a lot to love about Lower Dens’ latest record The Competition (listen to Discologist’s discussion of the album here). The Baltimore-based band’s reliably expansive synth-heavy sound has leaned heavily into our country’s state of affairs with lyrics like “No spines, no tongues, no fingerprints / We’re young Republicans” and “Look them in the eyes / When they push you off the raft / And make them watch you drown.” Jana Hunter and company spared no expense when it came to their live show, a sold-out affair at Songbyrd where they brought their own lights and fog machines placed around the stage for dramatic effect. The three-piece live band dedicated most of the set to The Competition, kicking things off with “Galapagos” and ending with “Buster Keaton,” but they treated fans that have stuck with them for the 10-year journey with “I Get Nervous,” off of their debut album Twin-Hand Movement.
Opening for Lower Dens was Baltimore-based musician Ami Dang. Her combination of the traditional sitar sound with ethereal synths and pedal effects was one of a kind, as was her request to have everyone at Songbyrd sit down on the ground for her performance. Her latest album Parted Plains is out now through Leaving Records.
