Hovvdy and Molly Parden at Bowery Ballroom (04-27-2022)
Words by Zach Romano
Austin duo Hovvdy rolled through Bowery Ballroom late last month, playing a sold-out show with a full band in promotion of their fantastic 2021 record True Love (Listen to Tom and me discuss why True Love was my second-favorite album of 2021 in our best-of podcast here). In front of an adoring crowd that knew all the words, co-frontmen Charlie Martin and Will Taylor treated the audience to a cathartic, surprisingly high-energy set.
The venue was already mostly full by the time opener Molly Parden took the stage. Parden peppered her set of lovely fingerpicked acoustic songs with charming stage banter, including relating how she met Hovvdy by tagging them in an Instagram post and then being asked basically out of nowhere to open for them on tour.
By the time Hovvdy went on, the room was jam-packed, like, tall guy walking by and you shift a little bit to let him get through but then he just kind of stops moving when he gets in front of you and now you’re standing at a weird angle with a tall guy blocking your view and can’t really move-packed (does this just happen to me?). Oversold? Quite possibly.
The band opened with just-released single “Town,” and from there launched into a set heavy on tracks from True Love. “Junior Day League” came next, and it immediately became clear that Hovvdy live is a very different beast than Hovvdy on record: whereas their records feature an almost aggressively chill sincerity (the band themselves have labeled their sound “pillowcore”), they perform on stage with energy and immediacy.
Song arrangements were often rejiggered to reflect this shift, perhaps most noticeably on waltz-y, nostalgic True Love highlight “Blindsided.” The piano line on the record was replaced with growling guitars, with Martin almost grimacing into the mic as he delivered the line “Cold Bud in a solo cup; Fresh Air on the radio” – a lyric that is about as perfect a summation of the band’s vibe as you’re going to find. The bassist, whose name I unfortunately didn’t catch, carried a lot of weight here as well, often taking up the instrumental melody as Martin and Taylor strummed and focused on their gorgeous vocal harmonies.
In addition to the True Love tracks, the band reached back and played favorites from previous albums like “Cathedral,” off 2019’s Heavy Lifter and “Pretend,” from their 2017 record Taster. Martin and Taylor have similar voices, and on Hovvdy’s records it’s often difficult to tell who is taking the lead on which track. It was a treat to see who was singing where, but what was most clear watching them play is what a real partnership this duo is and how they lift each other up in their songwriting and performance.
You can watch an aerial clip on the band performing “Blindsided” at the show below (video shot by Av Kv: Youtube, Twitter, Instagram). Plus, check out a few photos below, too.
Hovvdy’s latest full-length, True Love, is out now. You can purchase a copy on vinyl via Bandcamp. You can also check out Molly Parden’s latest release, Rosemary, via her Bandcamp.
