Little Dragon NYC!! — Performance Review

Synergy. That's the word that comes to mind when witnessing Swedish electro-synth-pop 'n soul band Little Dragon's live show.  Their two-night tour stop at famed NYC venues--The Music Hall of Williamsburg and Mercury Lounge--sold out to audiences awaiting  the  live rendition of their sophomore album, Machine Dreams. News of Little Dragon's talent seems to have spread by good ol' word of mouth, and jazz/R&B inspired tunes from their eponymous debut album, "Twice," "After the Rain," and "Test," still feel fresh to the eager crowd. Word on the opening acts: Danish psychedelic/alterna-pop band Oh No Ono and and British soul songstress VV Brown, who's touring across the Americas with Little Dragon, brought the necessary ambiance to lubricate listeners. VV Brown's energy is like a mash-up of Janelle Monae and Amy Winehouse, though after awhile her songs melded into one another.  Her cover of Drake's "Best I Ever Had" is a personal favorite.  After her set, the gorgeous and incredibly tall (5' 11") singer graciously took photos in the back and watched the ensuing Little Dragon show with her fans. But then, finally, the moment arrived. Lights dimmed. Electric siren intro to "A New"  brought the crowd to a hush. Frontwoman Yukimi Nagano, a breathy, smoky-voiced pixie is captivating, while her bandmates, high school homeboys Erik Bodin (drums), Fredrik Källgren Wallin (bass), and Håkan Wirenstrand (keyboardist par excellence) complement her Euro Erykah Badu sound.  She anchors the audience, yet when playing the ambient ballad "Feather,"  or the synth-pop  "My Step,"  her crooning fades and the rest of the band takes over. They construct a luscious atmosphere that we imagine as a parallel world, perhaps Yukimi is the interpreter. She dances and keyboardist Håkan Wirenstrand subtly alters the soundscape--the crowd is entranced, reminding us this is a dance record--something that a few run throughs of the album helps reiterate. For straight-up pop tunes "Never Never,"  and "Swimming,"  the band remains improvisational and fluid, with Yukimi running back to drummer Erik to thrash on his drum set for a cymbal frenzy or grooving on stage,  playing the claves, a tambourine, and even a set of gongs. As the haunting piano melts into the lyrics of the beloved "Twice":  Twice I turned my back on you/I fell flat on my face but didn't lose/tell me where would I go/tell me what led you on I'd love to know... Once again, the audience is brought to a hush. [caption id="attachment_8653" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="photo courtesy of Matthew Drazin, http://www.shotsofrock.com/"][/caption] Little Dragon traverses genres making hard to classify them as any one thing. Hailing from Gothenburg, Sweden, a idiosyncratic brewery of music, which includes indie folk singer José González (with whom Yukimi and Erik play live) and the pop group Love is All, Little Dragon bears the musical marks from a radiant mix of influences. American R &B, jazz, New Wave, Hiphop, Swedish folk, and synth comprise the band members' tastes, and listening to the record may evoke Prince or Depeche Mode. Machine Dreams pushes against conventions of electronic music, 1980's clashing head-on with 2010's, in a brave, imaginative and alluring sonic terrain. Says Nagano: “Maybe Little Dragon is a city. Blue traffic-lights, fast food-signs, neon, love, loneliness, technology – a city reflected in the middle of a vast ocean. The music juxtaposes tradition and intense knowledge of musical tools, with destruction, invention… blazing a new trail. I like to think of our music as dreamy, but not always in a pleasant way. Some songs are emotional and some more free and naive.” Check out the video for "Swimming" Animation by Yukimi's father, Yusuke Nagano: \"Swimming\" from Machine Dreams & Yukimi's blog Electric Forest