The Antlers dazzle the sold-out Troubadour with waves of melancholy glory

Andrew Veeder on
0

The-Antlers-2

The Antlers are no strangers to the Troubadour, having headlined there in 2010 with Phantogram opening the night. This time around though, it was for a pair of sold-out shows last weekend in support of their latest album, “Familiars.” Eight years into their career, the Brooklyn ensemble have mastered their dynamic melancholy sound, from lush soundscapes to cascades of bustling rock, often times within the same song, and the Troubadour’s pristine sound system favored it.

During their 14-song, nearly 100-minute set, the Antlers played almost the entirety of “Familiars,” with selections from 2009’s “Hospice” and “Drift Dive” from 2012’s “Undersea” EP peppered in. They began with the dreamy “Palace” and continued
with “Doppelgänger,” which shimmered with dueling trumpets and a sprawling falsetto. Standouts “Hotel” and “Parade” highlighted the emotive and engaging textures the band is capable of, and drew big responses from the crowd.

The older material was played with a seasoned intensity, with everything hitting a little harder. The haunting, fan-favorite “Kettering” still sent chills up your spine, with lead singer Peter Silberman swaying gently side to side, clutching the mic with both hands while singing the keyboard-driven number before it exploded into an avalanche of distorted guitar and Michael Lerner’s crashing drums. “Sylvia” swung beautifully from sparse to heavy, and the set closer “Refuge” sonically excelled in the quiet and not-so-quiet moments. The encore was a one-two punch from 2011’s “Burst Apart,” featuring opener “I Don’t Want Love,” and closer “Putting The Dog To Sleep,” which had the crowd singing along more than any other song of the night.

Fellow Brooklyn band Yellow Ostrich opened the show, concluding their tour run with the Antlers after a few weeks on the road. They largely played songs from their 2014 album “Cosmos,” and banged through “Shades” and “How Do You Do It,” as well as 2012’s “Ghost.” As their set came to a close, a fan yelled the request, “Play ‘Whale!'” to which lead singer Alex Schaaf replied, “You play ‘Whale,'” before concluding with “Marathon Runner.”