Aeolian Hall is one of those venues that can be absolutely magical, and other times can be absolutely sleep inducing. You need the right performer to command that stage and captivate the audience. Luckily, Owen Pallett is the right man for the job.
Before the man of the hour took the stage, Snowblink were up first and ready to win us over. Often, the opening band is simply tolerated and seen as that final obstacle before your favourite band comes on. I believe Snowblink was playing to a room a full of converts by the end of their set. Leading lady, Daniela Gesundheit effortlessly filled the room with her compelling and flawless voice. Each song seemed like a carefully crafted, musical poem placed lightly over top of loops, reverby guitars, keyboard and subtle back-up vocals. Beautiful and simple. I highly reccomment picking up their album "Long Live" and keep your eyes peeled for their return to London. It'll be a well worth venture.
Owen Pallett's performance on Thursday was one of the most endearing performances I've seen him give. Pallett's personality shone through in the intimate atmosphere of Aeolian hall and I couldn't help thinking his humanity was showing through more than usual. His banter between songs was witty and the dynamic between Owen and his side man, Thomas Gil was incredibly entertaining... in a sort of sadistic way. When he wasn't poking fun at Thomas, he had the audience utterly captivated. The whole audience looked very much like a deer in the headlights.. Pallett's greatest redeeming quality is his cool head on stage. Mistakes were few, but whether a battery in a pedal had died, something fell or Thomas had to tune before proceeding, he kept his cool and had the audience on his side the whole time. Though Pallett may have felt a bit out of his element playing such a small quiet space in London after having played LOLA just a few months prior, he didn't let it show. In fact, after the performance, whilst congratulating the Canadian music sensation, he mentioned liking larger and LOUDER spaces better. Perhaps it was the quiet hush of the venue, the lack of stadium seating or maybe it was just something in the air over East London.. whatever it was, this was by far my favourite Owen Pallett performance.
