Live!: The Cave Singers and Fleet Foxes at United Palace Theatre

As the Seattle folk rock trio Cave Singers took the stage and launched immediately into their first song, I only had one thought: “Why didn’t I listen to them before this!?”. I had heard a couple of their songs and that motivated me to buy their latest album No Witch but that had more or less been the end of it. And yet their highly energetic folk rock was everything you could want and more. Pete Quirk was friendly and personable and helped to really motivate the audience to get into their music. The only problem with their set was that it seemed far too short; a problem befitting of such a good opening band.

Whereas The Cave Singers were talkative and fun, Fleet Foxes was more or less their opposite. Instead they were grateful but reserved and channeled all their energies into performing their songs to the best of their ability. It wasn’t until at least about halfway through their set that Robin felt comfortable enough to try some onstage banter (assisted by the charmingly hilarious Joshua Tillman). Instead the band filled their nearly 2 hour long set with pretty much their whole catalog (minus the 2006 Fleet Foxes EP) and the concert hall was filled with the collective vocals of each audience member in addition to the band. While I’ve had the pleasure of listening to their albums to my heart’s content, that did not prepare me for the truly unmatched quality of seeing the band live. Each time the band hit its three or sometimes four part harmonies, I broke out in swarms of goosebumps; that and the occasional punch in the heart from Robin Pecknold’s emotional delivery. Each song was met with hearty applause (especially audience favorites “Mykonos” and “Blue Ridge Mountains”) eventually resulting in Pecknold's return to the stage, after nearly 5 minute standing ovation with undying applause, to play an encore consisting of a solo “Oliver James” before being joined by the rest of the band for “Helplessness Blues”.

I can honestly say that this show was by far the best show I’ve ever been to. Odd considering the caliber of shows I’ve been to and nothing against those shows but a live Fleet Foxes show is unlike any show I’ve ever experienced. Despite being in a seated theater as opposed to a standing room only venue, I felt the closest to the actual music making than I’ve ever felt. Each little thing the band did was felt and responded to in kind by the audience. The audience’s insistent need to let the band know they were enjoying themselves was not just for show; Fleet Foxes inspired these feelings of intense appreciate with their every action. For anyone who fancies themselves a Fleet Foxes fan, you absolutely must attend a concert: It’ll absolutely shatter your perceptions of them and rebuild them with a greater understanding, greater appreciation, and greater love. Fleet Foxes is definitely a band whose full effect is only transmitted live. It’s not often that I’m rendered absolutely speechless, inspired to sing out, and constantly tingling with goosebumps and yet the band did so effortless. So if you have the opportunity to see them like, do it. You won’t be disappointed.