In March, Youth Lagoon released what is at least in my top five albums of the year so far. So, despite the plethora of events occurring last night in Austin, the decision to attend Youth Lagoon’s show at the Mohawk came with no regrets. In correlation with the expanded sound of his sophomore album Wondrous Bughouse, Trevor Powers’ (Youth Lagoon) band has grown from a two-piece to feature a full band. Still, at the core of the music are loops and synth structures that Powers navigates and commands from behind two multi-tiered towers of keys and computers.
The set opened with the recorded synth track and album opener “Through Mind and Back” as the band members made their way onto the stage and tuned instruments. As on the album, standout song “Mute” burst from the speakers with steady snare and soaring keys. When a band follows the arrangement of an album and recreates it so dutifully, it always seems to strike a chord with fans, and the crowed exploded into movement with the song’s opening notes.
Onstage, Powers hides behind his tables of electronics, straggles of curls hanging down to shied his eyes. Triangular towers of translucent white backlit with rotating colors surrounded the quartet. Mostly new songs such as album highlights “Attic Doctor” and “Dropla” comprised the setlist, while standouts from Youth Lagoon’s debut album The Year of Hibernation also made appearances. These songs included the upbeat and danceable “Cannons” and the elegant and anthemic “Seventeen,” which prompted a chorus of fans to sing along with Powers. With only two albums, Youth Lagoon has amassed a trove of excellent songs and built a devoted base of fans.
Earlier in the night, Majical Cloudz opened the bill with a set of minimal and dark synth pop. A better fit for Youth Lagoon would be difficult to locate. Although lead singer Devon Welsh remained confined to about one square foot of the stage, he filled every inch with raw emotional power, delivering lyrics with pure sincerity as he slung the microphone cord and bent forward in quick, aggressive bows. Introspective, avant-garde pop ruled both of the evening’s sets for a great evening at the Mohawk.
