Sisters Johanna and Klara Söderberg Front the swedish-folk-duo-who-plays-americana act First Aid Kit. The band swung into town on the heels of their latest album Ruins Released just a few weeks prior.
It’s not often that an americana act can completely sell out anything in record time, let alone at Palace Theatre capacity. But sure enough, the show sold out weeks before their name was put up on the marquee. The audience had a large mix to it. Some were old enough to know who Emmylou Harris is, some young enough who only know Emmylou is a pretty name. But all ages could all find common ground in what they were there to hear: The harmonies.
There is something powerful about harmonizing, and something even more powerful about two sisters who can pull it off flawlessly. Throw in a talented backing band with the likes of Steve Moore, Melvin Duffy, and Scott Simpson and you’ve got one hell of a force to be reckoned with. Aside from such upbeat tunes as King of the World and Rebel Heart the band broke slightly out of character by covering Heart’s Crazy on you, complete with the famous acoustic guitar intro performed by Klara Söderberg that had left the audience in awe, if they weren’t already.
Other highlights from the night included You are the problem here, a raucous song about female empowerment that elicited a great response from the audience. Their anthem Nothing has to be true ended the evening as the last song before the encore, which included the new sing-along Hem Of Her Dress, where the band all gathered around a single microphone to perform it.
In a time where country music has pulled up it’s roots and moved to a more pop-music style, more and more listeners and turning their ears to the old western tunes of yesteryear that help make First Aid Kit a refreshing sound to the new western music revival. Their voices familiar, and their songs new.
Photos and Words by Casey Carlson, with Special Writing Contribution by Maria Eggers.
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