Heavy drumbeats echoed through the night as Of Monsters and Men began their set on Saturday night at CityFolk on The Great Lawn at Landsdowne Park. This year, the former Folk Festival was renamed “CityFolk” and moved to Lansdowne from Hog’s Back Park. The new location felt much grander and more spacious as thousands filled the field.
Black and white flashing lights silhouetted the Icelandic band as the crowd swayed under their control through the song “Thousand Eyes.” A set of four diamond-like shapes of lights provided a simple backdrop for the group.
With their first song done, the band smiled and said they were happy to be there before launching into “Human” from their newest album, Beneath the Skin. Their sophomore album features a faster and fiercer sound than their first, the smash hit My Head is an Animal.
Lead singer Nanna Bryndis Hilmarsdóttir commanded the stage with her vocals, and at times even took over on the drums. At some points her voice fell short but her enthusiasm carried throughout. Despite this, the irresistible sound of her and co-singer Ragnar “Raggi” Pórhallsson’s harmonies were featured through “Mountain Sound” and “I of the Storm”, among others.
The band’s other members, baritone guitarist Brynjar Leifsson, bass guitarist Kristján Páll Kristjánsson, drummer Arnar Rósenkranz Hilmarsson and percussionist Ragnhildur Gunnarsdóttir all displayed excellent musicality and brought energy to every song. In particular, Gunnarsdóttir showed proficiency on numerous instruments, including drums and the trumpet. Hilmarsson rallied support through “Lakehouse” by getting the crowd to sing along.
Combining both albums into their set, the band used slow acoustic sounds and intense electric ballads to display their impressive range. Well-timed lighting effects added to the exciting atmosphere and enhanced their passionate music. Though the wind bit through the night, the audience sang their way through “Little Talks”, one of the band’s biggest hits and a clear crowd favourite.
As the night drew to a close, Hilmarsdóttir thanked the audience for being so welcoming for their first time in Ottawa. The singer smiled however before saying in a thickly accented voice: “We’ll be back.” The band then waved goodbye and stepped off the stage. The audience launched into rowdy applause and cheers of “encore” before the band came back and performed their final two numbers.
The familiar plucks of guitar from “Dirty Paws” had the audience enthralled and the band finished off the night with a sure-to-be newest single, “We Sink”.
Of Monsters and Men provided a performance with such ferocity that one could think a group of monsters really did take the stage Saturday night.
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