Returning to Nashville for the first time in two years, thanks to the fine folks at Communion, Brooklyn indie/chamber pop outfit San Fermin are out in support of their gorgeous, personal, and layered new album, Belong. Renowned for their engaging and lush live show, the eight-piece group are slated to return to Exit/In tonight, Sept. 28 with support from likeminded Brooklynites Pavo Pavo, whose artsy, indie sound should land them squarely on your radar. Tickets are still available right here, so grab yours now and read on for more about the show!
SAN FERMIN
Helmed by Brooklyn based, Massachusetts born, Yale trained composer and songwriter Ellis Ludwig-Leone, indie rock/chamber pop outfit San Fermin formed toward the end of Ellis’ college career, where he had he assisted composer Nico Muhly (Sufjan Stevens, Grizzly Bear) and focused on more orchestral, classical and vocal-oriented compositions before turning his eye towards pop. Employing the help of a variety of contributors and collaborators for the band’s self-titled debut, San Fermin was met in 2013 with widespread critical acclaim, noted for for Ludwig-Leone’s ability to balance ensemble-based compositions, epic arrangements, and more modern, experimental sounds and production. By 2015 sophomore effort Jackrabbit, met with equal praise, the band had settled into a fairly stable eight-person lineup, with strings, brass, and dual vocalists, bringing to life their ambitious recordings with a engaging and layered live show. As San Fermin’s presence has continued to rise, regularly touring and becoming frequent festival performers, their recent third full-length, Belong, feels like their most buzzworthy effort to date, expanding on their poppy, indie, orchestral sound to explore some of Ludwig-Leone’s most personal and introspective thematic material to date. Rounded out by vocalists Charlene Kaye and Allen Tate, trumpet player John Brandon, saxophonist Stephen Chen, violinist Rebekah Durham, drummer Michael Hanf, and guitarists Tyler McDiarmid and Aki Ishiguro, Belong feels like a project that has finally settled into a proper band, and, now several years in, there’s never been a more exciting time to see San Fermin in person.
PAVO PAVO
Indie/art pop newcomers Pavo Pavo, who, like San Fermin, hail from Brooklyn, also trace their origins back to Yale, where vocalist/violinist/keyboard player Eliza Bagg and vocalist/guitarist/keyboard player Oliver Hill first connected and began collaborating, meeting their bandmates Ian Romer, Peter Coccoma, and Noah Hecht shortly thereafter. The group released their debut LP, Young Narrator in the Breakers, just last fall, but, already, are drumming up widespread critical praise, noted for their layered, off-kilter, at times nostalgic, and pop-laden approach to indie rock. A perfect compliment to San Fermin, they’re a band you should absolutely have an eye on, and definitely warrant some punctuality for this performance.
San Fermin and Pavo Pavo will perform tonight, Sept. 28 at Exit/In. The show is 18+, begins at 8:30 p.m. (doors at 7:30 p.m.), and tickets are available to purchase for $18.
