Earplugs (or 5 reasons why you should go see): Bat for Lashes

1) Maybe it's just the 9:30 Club's soundsystem, but Bat for Lashes' New Age-conquers-the-dance-floor stylings sound nothing short of epic live: Towering helpings of fuzz-free bass beats lend the sort of power to their set that justifies a giant mural of a howling wolf as a stage backdrop (sort of like this) and other interspersed kitsch.

2) Natashan Khan (the only full-time member of Bat for Lashes) has an outstanding voice: Imagine Björk's set of pipes, but with an understanding that "less can be more" and you have the gist. Rarely have I heard an artist end a song with a wail as potent as Khan's, and yet she grins so unassumingly after doing so...

3) Surprising instrumentation like autoharp, harmonium, and a harpsichord really fill out the sound, bringing nuance to the aforementioned brawn of the low-end. It's one thing to incorporate such eclecticism into your album, but to carry a harpsichord around with you on an international tour warrants admiration.

4) Touring members Charlotte Hatherly and Sarah Jones know how to carry a tune. The middle section of "Siren Song" (featured below) kills live. Absolutely slays. No joke.

5) Khan typically writes pretty compact songs. While such thriftiness can occasionally leave a longing for "more" by the end of a piece, it's always refreshing to encounter an artist that has a realistic grasp of an audience's attention span.

Samples:
"Glass" -- Two Suns (2009)

"Siren Song" -- Two Suns (2009)


Remaining U.S. Tour Dates:
17th August 2009 - The Loft @ Center Stage, Atlanta
19th August 2009 - The Parish, Austin
20th August 2009 - The Loft, Dallas
22nd August 2009 - Bluebird Theatre, Denver
26th August 2009 - Neumo's, Seattle
27th August 2009 - Wonder Ballroom, Portland
29th August 2009 - Outside Lands Festival, San Francisco
31st August 2009 - The Music Box Theatre @ Fonda, LA