Lord Huron debuts "Vide Noir" live at Electric Factory
Copyright Dylan Eddinger Photography
Lord Huron finally made their long awaited Philadelphia return at the Electric Factory last night, just in time to give fans their first live taste of their newest studio album, Vide Noir, which was released on April 20th.
The band took the stage decked out in super formal, almost western-inspired, coats, a look that fully embodied who this band is. They opened the night with “Ancient Names (Part 1)” off of Vide Noir. I was curious as to whether or not this show’s setlist would be the new album front to back, but I knew there was no way they could neglect their 2015 stunner, Strange Trails. The first few opening songs were absolutely breathtaking, with seamless transitions from “Ancient Names (Part 1)” to “Meet Me in the Woods” to “Hurricane (Johnnie’s Theme).” If you weren’t familiar with Lord Huron’s music, you would have thought they were playing one long epic.
Something that’s so cool about both Strange Trails and Vide Noir is the thematic similarities that all of the songs share. They mesh with each other in a way that most artists have yet to master, but if the band didn’t want to pause between songs to catch their breath, they wouldn’t have needed to. Everything blends together so perfectly that it feels like you’re in a dream.
The stage was projected with cinematic shots of nature - one of Lord Huron’s prime compositional inspirations and lyrical themes - as well as laser lights that transformed Vide Noir’s diamond logo into stunning art, which made it an unexpected visually phenomenal show, something that I actually hadn’t anticipated from these woodsy gentlemen.
Of course, as most bands that roll through this town do, frontman Ben Schneider told the crowd that Philadelphia is his favorite city. It was a genuine sentiment, and he listed off familiar stomping grounds where Lord Huron used to play, eliciting cheers with each one. Philadelphia is always home to anyone that stops by.
Lord Huron played a tireless nineteen song set, ending on a haunting “Time to Run” from 2012’s Lonesome Dreams. It was perfection. But of course they weren’t finished, and delivered a two song encore of “The Night We Met” and “We Went Wild.”
If you’ve never seen Lord Huron, this is the tour to see. They give you the best of everything they’ve got. It’s not often that they play Philadelphia either, so if you were lucky enough to catch this one, then you know it was something special.