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For someone who writes such melancholy lyrics, Sondre Lerche sure has a great time onstage. On the opening night of his U.S. tour Monday at New York City's Irving Plaza, the mop-haired singer-songwriter from Norway was promoting his second album, Two Way Monologue as he smiled, danced, and swayed across the stage like a kid. Lerche filled the time between songs with witty banter, engaging the crowd to make it seem like they weren't at a concert, but rather hanging out with a friend as he showed them his latest songs, proving that he is as charming as he is talented.
Lerche kicked off the show with a solo "It's Our Job" before introducing his new band and "best friends," the Faces Down. They then went into the jazzy-swing of "It's Too Late," where the audience got their first glimpse of the band's chops. The bossa nova catchiness of "Days That Are Over" couldn't help but to get the mild-mannered crowd moving their feet, while "Suffused," from his debut album, Faces Down, was injected with a decidedly country feel, thanks to the twang of a steel pedal guitar. Surprising the crowd was a new rocker, "Johnny Johnny Ooh Ooh." Lerche, a mere twenty-one-years-old, joked later that it was his metal song and poked fun at his own age, saying, "Isn't it what you crazy kids are listening to these days?"
Switching from one genre to another effortlessly, Lerche moved from rock to the jam-centric "Dead Passengers" to the love-lost ballad "It's Over," all while charming and entertaining the crowd by never taking himself too seriously on stage.
Other highlights included "Wet Ground," a slow, 1940s-esque pop song, and "Stupid Memories." Lerche said the latter described "one of those days you wish never existed. We can all relate to it, like Oprah." After energized versions of "On the Tower" and "No One's Gonna Come," Lerche and his band ended their set with an amped-up version of "Two Way Monologue."
The delicateness of Lerche's voice was most apparent when he came out for the encore to sing "You Know So Well," a song he wrote about a girl who broke his heart. Judging by the way he stumbled over his words as he introduced it, it was apparent that the fragileness was sincere. A crowd favorite, "Sleeping On Needles," gave way to the final song of the night, "Maybe You're Gone," which Lerche precluded by offering to stay after the show and show his gratitude to his fans by signing autographs.
Despite his age, Lerche's music has a mature quality that some successful pop stars never quite obtain. But he remains grounded, offering a "thank you" after every song and making the audience feel important to him. It's his combination of innocence and skill that makes him so appealing. With his breathy vocals and dazzling guitar work -- complex yet not boastful -- Lerche is something special, an artist talented beyond his years who continues to head in the right direction.