Frightened Rabbit: Live

It’s not surprising that Glasgow’s Frightened Rabbit have developed quite a fervent following in America, more so than in the UK. Their vibrant, anthemic folk bangers are not that far off from those that appeal to the audience that Mumford & Sons and The Lumineers have built up, except with the self-deprecating lyrics of frumpy, ordinary-looking frontman Scott Hutchinson. But you wouldn’t even tell with the absence of a lyric sheet, as the toe-tapping, celebratory atmosphere they capture on stage invites the audience to follow along to their catchy, euphoric melodies. Granted, they were doing this kind of music before it became such a bankable commodity.

The audience at the sold-out Fonda Theater was devotedly sold on their well-sequenced setlist, which mostly featured songs off their latest release, Pedestrian Verse. Between most of their early songs, Hutchinson was something of a dry, unassuming comedian, playing matchmaker in hopes of finally witnessing their first “Frightened Rabbit wedding”. Though there were no proposals that night, they did seamlessly follow with the rousing, gospel-accented Late March, Death March. We also got to learn that it is also his daughter’s favorite tune, which doesn’t bode well when teachers ask her what her favorite song is in school.

Midway through the show, Hutchinson brazenly commented with a dash of sarcasm, “Where the fuck were you guys last time?” He was referring to their performance back in 2010 at the same venue, which wasn’t as packed due to it being the same night the season finale of Lost aired. All is forgiven, though, as they pardoned the audience with an intimate rendition of Poke. It was just a bright spotlight lighting Hutchinson and his guitar to a darkened audience, to which they followed in a big, big way with the schmaltzy, heart-on-sleeve ballad Good Arms vs. Bad Arms.

From there on out, it was one build-up after another. But not before challenging the audience to help him harmonize with him before starting fan favorite Swim Until You Can’t See Land, pepping the audience by telling them that they “can’t sing worse than in Seattle”. According to Hutchinson, Los Angelenos ultimately won the fight, and they made sure to follow suit with thumping, jovial encore Living in Colour, which for a moment felt like the building was about to collapse due to all the shaking and jolting that came from the venue balcony. All this proved that they sure know how to please an audience with a strident, taut show, and they have nothing to envy about that other rabble-rousing band of farmhands.