The Los Angeles-based indie rock band Local Natives played a surprise sold-out show at San Francisco’s Rickshaw Stop in support of their upcoming album. The band played a slew of brand new, unreleased songs to a small crowd of about 400 devoted fans who managed to purchase a ticket Wednesday morning right after the show was announced. The announcement came after some hinting at a new release via the band’s social media, and Popscene announced a series of shows in celebration of their 21st anniversary.
The band, which consists of Taylor Rice, Kelcey Ayer, Ryan Hahn, Matt Frazier and Nik Ewing, has been fairly quiet in recent years, ever since the release of their sophomore album, "Hummingbird," in 2013. They spoke briefly about starting work on a new album back in 2014 while touring and played a couple new songs at shows in the summer of 2015. They kept a low profile until the beginning of this April, when they posted a simple blue square on all their social media. It wasn’t until last Tuesday that they posted pictures and videos of the album cover of their new single “Past Lives."
A video posted by Local Natives (@localnatives) on
Thursday’s show was completely sold out with only 10 tickets sold last minute at the door. The only merchandise sold at the show were physical copies of their previously teased, unreleased single which also included a poster and lyrics.
Los Angeles-based band MUNA opened the show, performing a sample of their “dark pop” tracks that brought back memories of '90s alternative singer-songwriters but with a darker, modern edge. Most of their set list consisted of songs from their upcoming album "Loudspeaker," which comes out May 6.
SF, U R BEAUTIFUL 🌹 pic.twitter.com/WnK9H9USGl
— MUNA (@whereisMUNA) April">https://twitter.com/whereisMUNA/status/72609979406... 29, 2016
After MUNA’s set, Local Natives took over the venue, opening with the long-awaited “Past Lives.” The entire crowd seemed immediately electrified. They played brand new, never-before-heard tracks including “Call Me On," “Dark Days," “6’10,'” “Masters," “Coins" and “Sea of Years." The songs off the unnamed album seemed to have been performed flawlessly and every song sounded like a whole new facet to the band’s sound. Fans also got to hear old favorites from "Hummingbird" and 2010’s "Gorilla Manor." The encore was a stunning performance of “Sun Hands” that had the audience jumping and dancing so much that the entire venue seemed to shake. To complete the night, Taylor Rice stage dove into the hands of the absolutely ecstatic crowd.
Dang. That was epic. #popscene21 #localnatives @localnatives
A video posted by POPSCENE Presents (@popscenepresents) on
The surprise show, if anything, left fans with the highest possible expectations for the three-years-in-the-making compilation. For those who did not get the chance to attend, it proved that Local Natives have a lot in store for the expected release and tour later this year. They already officially released the new single this morning, and this summer holds promises of more singles to be released.
