Review: Fleet Foxes ****
THE danger with great expectations is the reality doesn't always match the hype.
Earlier this month Fleet Foxes beat the likes of Radiohead and Paul Weller to win Mojo magazine's best live act award, a considerable achievement for a band whose debut album only came out last year.
However, they arrived in Leeds on the back of an underwhelming performance at Glastonbury where they were outshone by veteran rockers like Bruce Springsteen and Neil Young.
But if their intricate harmonies disappeared above the vast fields of Avalon, the Leeds O2 Academy proved to be the perfect venue for the band members to find their voice again. They began with an elaborate opening sequence to Sun It Rises which unfurled in polyphonic waves and was met with equally rapturous applause from a willing audience.
It set the tone for the rest of the performance which wove their finely honed, acoustic-led music with soaring, pitch-perfect, harmonies.
Stopping occasionally to retune their instruments (and catch their breath), there was a joyous exaltation in songs like Ragged Wood and Mykonos that offset the quieter moments.
Fleet Foxes' four-part harmonies have drawn understandable comparisons with CSNY and certainly lead singer Robin Pecknold bears more than a passing resemblance to a young Graham Nash.
With their plaid shirts and impressive beards (except guitarist Skyler Skjelset, who looks about 12) they wouldn't have appeared out of place at Woodstock, but they are no mere imitators and their unique blend of folky Americana and alt-rock lends itself to this kind of venue.
When Pecknold was left alone on stage to play a couple of acoustic numbers he used his voice to thunderous effect, demonstrating a scope that few can match. He was rejoined by his bandmates for a rousing version of Blue Ridge Mountains which brought their hour-and-a-half set to a crowd-pleasing close. On this evidence, there are great things to come from Fleet Foxes.
Leeds O2 Academy
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Saturday 11 February 2012
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