Opening with the slow pulse and hushed trill of “Hunger of the Pine,” complete with its Miley Cyrus sample, set the tone for Alt-J’s contorted headlining set Friday. In fact, dramatic musical dynamics were about the only movement onstage, with the UK quartet standing stiffly clad in black like an Eighties arthouse act.
Yet the distinctive yip and yelp of Joe Newman’s vocals, combined with the high harmonies of keyboardist Gus Unger-Hamilton, melted into a mesmerizing swirl, from the lulling chants of “Fitzpleasure” to the cracked rhythms and beats that refuse to stay in pocket on “Something Good.” Alt-J seduces and disrupts, never quite allowing the crowd to settle.
Though new single “Left Hand Free” from this year’s This is All Yours faltered vocally, and “Dissolve Me” buried itself in a blur of fuzz, the gorgeously turned “Matilda” restored the set. “Bloodflood,” from 2012 debut and breakout An Awesome Wave, paired up with its new sequel “Bloodflood pt. II,” while the a cappella “Ripe & Ruin” hearkened Old English balladry into the slow and moody “Tessellate” and harsh bruised beats of “Every Other Freckle.”
“Warm Hills” whistled pastoral to the skittered clip of “The Gospel of John Hurt,” but the best surprise proved new LP bonus track and Bill Withers cover “Lovely Day,” the soulful funk torqued into droning, hypnotic electronics. Alt-J’s experimental imperative doesn’t always work, especially live, but as closing hit “Breezeblocks” proved, when they strike a balance they mine gold.
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This article appears in November 7 • 2014.
