Youth Lagoon, the Corner Hotel, July 29
Sundays call for a different kind of music. The kinds of mellow sounds that will help ease you into the week ahead, erasing any remnants of a sore head that may have resulted from banging, bass-heavy tunes and booze the night before. On this particular Sunday evening at the Corner Hotel, the atmospheric and soothing sounds of
Youth Lagoon - the moniker of fresh-faced 22-year-old Trevor Powers - proved the perfect antidote to such weekend woes.
Taking the stage behind his set of keyboard and pedals with guitarist Logan Hyde (impressive in his own right) Powers performed songs from his debut album
The Year of Hibernation, a title that seems quite fitting, given the lullaby-esque tracks with which it’s littered. After one listen to Youth Lagoon’s first offering it’s not hard to see the potential for an incredible live set, and it's safe to say Powers exceeded all expectations. Chilled out tracks such as ‘Bobby’ and crowd favourite ‘Cannons’ which exude a dreamlike and nostalgic vibe in their lo-fi recordings became goosebump-inducing and almost haunting when played loudly and audaciously live. The fact that the pair could create such gorgeous sounds with just a few instruments and Powers' quirky and strained vocals was seriously impressive.
There wasn’t much talk from Powers in between tracks, but this didn’t diminish his rapport with the crowd, especially given that his scattered interaction consisted of sincere declarations of gratitude towards the punters. If anything, this allowed the show to flow seamlessly from one dreamy track to the next, as well as sparking the development of at least 50 big fat crushes on the Idaho native.
At the end of a short but solid set, the only gripe to be reported was the absence of an encore - especially disappointing given Powers' admission that the gig was "very special", being his "very last show for a long time". That being said, Youth Lagoon's non-stop touring off the back of his successful debut recording, as well as his ability to dish up an even more amazing live show, means he’s well and truly earned the right to take some time off and celebrate being awesome at life. We just hope he doesn’t leave too long a gap before his next Melbourne visit.
WORDS: Kate Gorfine