Little Dragon vibes with Columbus, for sure

By Ryan G

The Little Dragon show at the Newport Music Hall was an impulse show. I’ve been vaguely aware of the band for a long while. Also, vaguely interested. Also, vaguely had a hunch they’d put on a heckuva live show.

I didn’t make plans in advance because of Steadfast Festival looming in the near future, but I decided on Monday that I needed an evening where I could zone out and forget about the festival for a bit. So, Little Dragon it is!

Turns out the experimental electronic collective has quite the dedicated fanbase. There was some good people watching to be had at the event. Although, I’m sure I stood out in my own way with my business casual garb amongst a crowd of hippies. My favorite person in the audience had to have been this dude adorned in a modern day equivalent of Joseph’s Amazing Technicolor Dream-Coat. Just getting down with the groove.

Speaking of the groove, I found myself thinking that Little Dragon makes the perfect sort of music to zone out to.

They know how to put on a show too. Strings of metal bead-like ornaments reminded me of the backdrop I saw at Arcade Fire’s Reflektor tour and cast hundreds of little beams of light across the audience. The production also involved this little spotlight clusters that revolved in place like little UFOs.

The band themselves held a sort of power over the audience. Vocalist Yukimi Nagano could do a lot with very little – a mere red veil entranced the crowd. And she wielded a tambourine more like a baton – an ethereal conductor, where the orchestra is synths, drums, lights, and a willing crowd. The hues from stage echoed the mood of the music – red for psychedelic moments, white for aggressive moments that felt like a spaceship taking off.

I did feel that my lack of familiarity with Little Dragon’s music took away from the experience, but that’s more of an indictment on me than the band. I will certainly welcome the opportunity to zone out to this group in the future.

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