The Love Language
Nightlight
Chapel Hill, NC
April 17, 2010
A lot of buzz has been following the Love Language ever since the undeniably catchy “Lalita” hit the internet. It was just a few summers ago that frontman Stuart McLamb was living with his parents, suffering through an all-time low and finding an escape through a four-track machine in a rented storage room. (At least that’s the story that he’s been tellin’). A messy breakup, a great songwriter, and a little luck can go a long way these days. Demos of what would become the self-titled debut album made their way into the a small independent record store in the beach town of Wilmington, NC and it was here that an “executive” at Portland’s Bladen County Records heard it playing over the stereo. Bladen County would eventually release the arresting debut album by The Love Language. Meanwhile, a live 7 piece band consisting of close friends and Stu’s brother was quickly thrown together.
Having seen the original lineup, which had a magical on-stage chemistry, 7 times over the past year and a half, I was a little concerned that Stu wouldn’t be able to capture lightning in a bottle twice. Well, I’m very happy to report, in all honesty, that he did.
They opened with “Blue Angel”, a beautiful song off the forthcoming record that has a bit of a waltz to it. After replacing the snare that couldn’t even make it through the opener, Jordan counted off the fastest and most energetic “Providence” I’ve ever seen. At this point, it was clear that everything was going to better than fine since this might just be my favorite Love Language song, and they killed it. The bluesy ballad that is “This Blood Is Our Own” allowed the packed and sweaty crowd to catch their breath and sway collectively. Another breezy tune called “Anthophobia” on the setlist followed, but this one was new to me. This one has a summer beach feel, and it very well could have been written at the beach last summer since he was in Wilmington then. They pick the energy level way up with the psychedelic pop of “Sparxxx” which features some of the most powerful wailing you’ll ever hear, courtesy of Stu’s golden pipes. The anguish of the breakup can be felt in “Stars” and many couldn’t help but join in on the chorus. Stu’s first collaboration with BJ Burton occurred on the next song, “Horophones”, which was originally released on the excellent compilation of Triangle bands titled Hear Here.
And finally, 8 songs deep into the set, they break out “Lalita”, the infectious breakup song that started all the buzz on the internet last year. This song will never fail to disappoint. More times than not, Missy Thangs gets possessed by the beat and takes her tambourine into the crowd as she did tonight, as if there’s no way the stage could possibly be a big enough to contain the energy of the song. “Nocturne” and the 60’s infused and very danceable “Brittany’s Back” followed and here’s the video evidence:
The 45 minute set concluded with the upbeat “Heart to Tell”, the lead single off of Libraries. This was the first time I’d seen this song live and it’s an easy choice as the first single. After a few minutes off the “stage”, which meant chatting with close friends at the bar, they came back on to do a cover of Fats Domino’s boogie “The Fat Man” and closed out the show with an even higher energy song from the new album titled “This Room”. You can watch the encore here:
Stuart was feeling the love from the audience all night and to reciprocate he offered free shots to anyone and everyone as he left the small stage at the Nightlight. In many ways, this felt like a celebration of the signing to Merge Records and a homecoming. Up until last winter, Stu was living in the Carrboro/Chapel Hill area. But after signing to Merge, recording the new album with BJ Burton at Flying Tiger Studios made the move to Raleigh a must. With a lot of familiar faces in the crowd in about as intimate of an art space as you can get in the Nightlight, it seemed more like a party (and in fact, it was something of a birthday party for a friend) than a show. There’s no doubt in my mind that The Love Language is going to become a national act with the summer release of the new album, and many new fans will stumble upon a gem when they dig into the back catalog. But for now, Stu and The Love Language are still very much a part of the local music community and I think shows like this will always remind him and the rest of us how lucky we are to call this home. As for fans of the original lineup, this is a win-win because the new lineup is fantastic AND we now have The Light Pines to give us even more of the psychedelic pop that you crave.
Eric Chen
Click here to download the lead single “Heart to Tell”
Setlist:
Blue Angel
Providence
This Blood Is Our Own
Anthophobia
Sparxxx
Stars
Horophones
Lalita
Nocturne
Brittany’s Back
Heart to Tell
Fat Man
This Room
