Jana Hunter is very much the dominant figurehead of Lower Dens.
And as a ‘gender fluid’ frontperson the persona she (for the sake of this review!) projected on stage on Saturday was appropriately fierce yet bashful, a mixture of single mindedness and fun most evident whenever a nervous smile cracked through the seriousness.
That’s not to downplay the band, who delivered a set consisting of 75% of tracks from March’s Escape From Evil, a sleek, rhythmic album that translated exquisitely to its live equivalents.
Hunter’s voice was on fine form, near operatic at points, always the centre of a devoted crowd’s attention. She confessed that this was the first date of the tour not supporting Belle And Sebastian at huge venues, and the joy at being able to pay for longer than half an hour was visible on the face of each band member.
Better still, a Brighton crowd who clearly hung on Hunter’s every word and applauded each song after only a few bars seemed a boost for the Baltimore four-piece.
After closing with Sucker’s Shangri La, which had been called out for earlier in the set, Lower Dens seemed genuinely sad to leave the stage.
Four stars
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