New York City’s Bowery Ballroom, host to rising and established artists, surged with the excited reception of Jenny Owen Youngs and Jukebox the Ghost on May 27.
The cozy but crowded hall, darkened slightly by remnants of gothic architecture, was graced by Youngs’ newest sound from her recently released album, “Transmitter Failure.”
The new album retains much of Youngs’ notable folk and indie sound from her debut album, “Batten the Hatches,” but extenuates the pop undertones to a greater degree. Songs such as “Clean Break” showed a distinct deviation from her earlier work, but possessed the same vigor and raw sincerity her fans have learned to crave.
Youngs rocked originals such as “Fuck was I” and “Led to the Sea.” She proved as energetic and friendly as ever in her inter-song banter, as well as her mellow response to a few over enthused fans with a simple thumbs-up.
Ending with “Last Person,” accompanied by Jukebox the Ghost who covers the song in their vinyl split with Youngs, Youngs invited the band to do “terrible, awesome things” to the audience.
“Awesome things” translated to a performance that echoed various influences from bands including Cheap Trick, Queen, The Beatles, and a dash of David Bowie, producing a sound that defied classification.
The band from Philadelphia consists of the wide-eyed lead vocalist and keyboardist Ben Thornewill, guitarist Tommy Siegel, and drummer Jesse Kristin. Their upbeat pop-indie tunes contrasted comically with their often apocalyptic subject matter from their newly released “Let Live and Let Ghosts.”
Youngs and Jukebox shared the stage with These United States, who kick started the night with songs from their 2008 album “Crimes.”
The indie rock band hails from Washington, D.C., and consists of Jesse Elliott, Tom Hnatow, and Robby Cosenza. Their hypnotizing folk set incorporated traces of country and psychedelic sound, producing a rough but rousing performance that established the energy of the night.
