Sondre Lerche & Willy Mason @ Webster Hall: Casting Your Spell, So Arresting

Last night marked the eighth time I've seen Sondre Lerche since his debut, Faces Down, got its US release, roughly five years ago. The gig at Webster Hall was considerably shorter than last year's Bowery Ballroom show (which went on for two and a half hours), but just as fantastic. It's always exciting to see Sondre and last night was no exception.

The 19-song set focused mostly on his latest release, Phantom Punch, but included various old favorites as well, including 'Modern Nature', which featured the usual singalong it garners from the majority of last evening's attendees.

Sondre was slightly less verbose than previous gigs, but I gather that was due to the tight curfew of 10:15. He did manage to throw in a few impromptu dance moves during some guitar solos/tech difficulties and even convince the rest of his band, The Faces Down, to do the same. Adorable.

The Webster Hall gig was Sondre's homecoming as well as the final date of the tour - good spirits were flying high in the air. With four full albums under his belt, Sondre has truly carved out an impressive range of songs; jazz-centric to acoustic to electric-driven tunes - and they all sounded superb last night alongside one another.



To hear samples from each of his albums and to learn more about the Norwegian wonderboy, check out his official site ASAP.

Setlist: Airport Taxi Reception/The Tape/The Curse Of Being In Love/All Luck Ran Out/Well Well Well/Minor Detail/Dead Passengers/Tragic Mirror/Modern Nature/Everyone's Rooting For You/Face The Blood/Hello Headphones/Track You Down/She's Fantastic/Phantom Punch/Say It All//Sleep On Needles/Two Way Monologue///John Let Me Go

MP3: Sondre Lerche - The Curse Of Being In Love

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While I unfortunately missed the first opener, Thomas Dybdahl, I did manage to catch the second opener, the much-buzzed singer-songwriter Willy Mason. With opening slots for the likes of Death Cab For Cutie, Ben Kweller and Radiohead as well as a record deal with Conor Oberst-owned, Team Love, I was very curious to check out Willy and his band.

While Willy isn't exactly the most engaging live performer, there's something rich about his music and vocal stylings that brings to mind a young M. Ward, or even Willie Nelson. Quite impressive, indeed. 22-year old Willy just released his second full-length, If The Ocean Gets Rough. You can hear the album in ints entirety and judge it for yourself over at his MySpace page.