REVIEW: Of Monsters and Men Takes Over Central Park
REVIEW
REVIEW
☆ BY JULIA FINOCCHIARO ☆
August Ponthier
ICELANDIC BAND OF MONSTERS AND MEN WERE BACK—in NYC last week for the second leg of their tour supporting their album All Is Love and Pain in the Mouse Parade. This time, they were playing just down the street from me in the middle of Central Park at the SummerStage. After weeks of brutal heat in the city, we finally had a cool, crisp night to enjoy the show.
The night began with a beautiful set by singer-songwriter August Ponthier, who played a mix of songs, many of which were from their latest album Everywhere Isn’t Texas, detailing their complicated relationship with growing up in Texas and now recently coming out as nonbinary. “Betty,” which opened the set, is all about reintroducing yourself, and Ponthier spoke a few times throughout the night about their journey and how they’ve been embracing themselves over the last year.
A little while later, Of Monsters and Men began their set with “Television Love” and “Dream Team,” before throwing it back to “King and Lionheart” off of their first album. About halfway through the set, the band introduced “From Finner” as the first song they wrote together as a band. At the beginning of the encore, they played “Love Love Love,” which they said was the first song they played together as a band.
The band had clearly crafted this setlist to be on the slower side to go along with the vibe of the album, and it was the perfect show to just close your eyes and listen to the music outside in the fresh air. Fans brought blankets to sit on together, and some laid down at the back of the grass just to take everything in. Upbeat hits like “Dirty Paws” and “Little Talks” were of course included in the set, and singer Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir came down to the barricade to interact with fans during “Visitor,” which closed out the main set. “Fruit Bat” was the last song of the night, an eight minute track whose second half is just a hauntingly beautiful instrumental.
The All Is Love and Pain in the Mouse Parade tour continues for a few more dates in Mexico and South America, in addition to a hometown show in Iceland on October 17. Grab tickets if you can; this is a stunning show that you don’t want to miss!
