Living Is Rare Follow Up at Kafé Kerouac
* All photos by Olivia Pace (@imagesbyoliviia)
Columbus alt-rockers Living Is Rare sold out their second show at Kerouac last Friday. Reflecting the eager audience that came out, the band’s presence exceeded the confines of the small show room, largely due to the showmanship of frontman Max Little. The singer came onto the stage in an all-black garb with striking orange sunglasses. Living Is Rare’s sound combines sparkling synth with the tight rhythms of Caleb Hutchinson’s drums and Ryan Armstrong’s bass to create a vibe somewhere between retro new wave and modern indie pop.
The band kept the pace of the show lively with an intermission about halfway through, in which an audience member was picked out to test Armstrong’s perfect pitch on the keyboard. They also found clever ways to work covers into the show, first with an audience call-and-response component to their take on the White Stripes’ anthemic “Seven Nation Army,” and then with a medley of diverse songs exclusively by artists originating in Ohio.
The Ohio Cover Medley referenced artists ranging from John Legend to Walk the Moon and Twenty One Pilots, and will likely remain a staple of Living Is Rare’s set. While Little was apparently recovering from strep throat at the time, (he assured the audience that he was no longer contagious,) the resulting growl worked well with the band’s sound and made me wish that the medley had included an opportunity for him to mimic Matt Berninger’s monotone.
While the covers were fun, the band’s original songs were the real heart of the show. The songs shared a palpable sense of emotion, utilizing a conversational tone that would lead into huge, poppy hooks. The show closed with LIR’s only recorded song so far, “Force of Friction,” which had the entire room literally jumping along. The club beat of the song’s chorus made the venue briefly feel bigger than it was, and I could vividly imagine the band filling out the Newport with lights and sound.
Living Is Rare will be performing at our very own MIC Night house show on April 21st!