Brighton, England’s (by way of Pakistan) Bat For Lashes kicked off their one month long US tour at the sold out Varsity Theater on Friday night, playing an enthralling and engaging 75 minute set to an adoring (perhaps too much so at times) audience. Natasha Khan’s angelic vocals soared throughout the intimate performance, despite her cheeky claim that she had “a frog in her throat—I’m hoping it turns into a prince.” She did cough a bit between songs, but whatever nagging problems she was experiencing did little to hinder her incredible vocals and captivating stage presence.

The four piece band sauntered on stage to a small ovation, considering how large the crowd was, and proceeded to give a moody introduction leading into “Glass,” the gorgeous first track from the new record Two Suns. It set an ominous, haunting tone to the night’s proceedings, with each song imbued with plenty of dark passion and elegiac spirit. Khan bounded about the stage, guided along by the booming bass drums of Sarah Jones and the many different instruments played throughout the night by Charlotte Hatherley, the former Ash guitarist who has joined Bat For Lashes on their current tour. Ben Christophers handled most of the keyboard duties during the show, along with any other sinister effects that the songs called for. And with this cracking band behind her, Khan was allowed the freedom to completely lose herself in her music, dancing about the stage and bouncing in time with the beat, clearly enjoying the opportunity to play her new songs.

“Sleep Alone” was stunning, with Khan’s soaring vocals ringing throughout the venue, and the dynamic rhythms of the song stirring people to dance if they could find enough room to move. The band built on that momentum with a passionate take on “Horse & I,” one of my favorite tracks from Bat For Lashes brilliant first record, Fur And Gold. Khan sat at the keyboards for this number, which was lush and hypnotic, carried along by her exquisite vocals and Jones’ driving drums, as well as Hatherley playing what appeared to be a miniature version of some sort of accordion, which only added to the ghostly intensity of the track. Khan stayed at the keyboards while gently guiding the band into a gorgeous version of “Traveling Woman” that was delicately bewitching and intensely moving. But the intimate surroundings and the reverential audience allowed for far too many “I love you” and “Thank you” calls from the crowd, which Khan handled nobly, thanking the crowd repeatedly and claiming this was “a wonderful way to kick off the tour.”

“Siren Song” was slow building and rather explosive, with the lavish chorus absolutely filling the room with the stately sounds of the band. “The Wizard” found Khan leaving the keyboards to stalk the stage menacingly while shaking her ring of bells whenever the subject of the song was mentioned in the lyrics. “Trophy” was one of the highlights of the set for me, with Khan bounding around the stage while the menacing sounds of the band gave the song quite a vital kick. Khan picked up a guitar to play the lonely chords of “Peace Of Mind,” with the rest of the band chiming in on the choir-like backing vocals. “Tahiti” was subtle and understated, but slowed the show down quite a bit. The energy picked up considerably as Khan asked us if we “fancied a dance” before playing another highlight of the set: a lively, lovely version of “What’s A Girl To Do.” The main set ended with the propulsive intensity of “Pearl’s Dream,” which kept the crowd and Khan dancing, and again showcased the soaring vocals of the enchanting frontwoman, who playfully worked the stage and the audience all evening.

The lengthy encore started with Khan sitting at a table (which she said made her “feel like a fortune teller”), playing an autoharp for the gorgeous “Prescilla,” accompanied only by the subtle effects of Christophers. It was a radically stripped down, slower version of the song that added to the powerful sentimentality of the track. The subdued nature of the encore continued with a plodding version of “Good Love” that had Khan back at the keyboards and the attention span of the audience around me drifting a bit. “Moon And Moon” was stirring, especially with the echoing backing vocals of the rest of the band, but extended the despondent disposition of the encore. “Two Planets” picked things up just a bit, but everyone was waiting for the band to play “Daniel,” and seemed to be holding in their collective enthusiasm for that song. So, when the band eventually played it for their last song of the evening, the crowd became engaged for perhaps the first time during what was until then a melancholy encore. But the infectious, massive chorus of “Daniel” certainly resuscitated the show, and closed the great set out strongly.

Bat For Lashes certainly played to their strengths at the Varsity Theater, allowing the pulsing rhythms of the songs to guide but never overshadow the divine vocals of Natasha Khan, who truly electrified the audience with her ebullient stage presence and stirring voice. It was interesting to think that after this intimate performance the band would be playing in front of 70,000+ people at Lollapalooza on Sunday, but with a show this engaging I have no problem believing that Khan and her band mates can easily enchant a crowd of that size with songs that pulse with passion and are brimming with intensity. Her music is truly unique and fresh, and with two Mercury Prize nominated albums now under her belt, her audience is only bound to grow.

[review by Erik Thompson, photos by Jon Behm]

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