Frightened Rabbit

The Beauty of Inelegance: Frightened Rabbit live – 4.24.16 – Ogden Theater, Denver

Listening to Frightened Rabbit’s second album, Midnight Organ Fight, when it hit back in 2008 was like discovering a whole new flavor of Starburst. The sound seemed familiar with its folkish overtones meets synthy indie rock. Yet, the recording’s vibe is aggressively raw, endearingly rough, and satisfyingly unpredictable featuring clattering drums holding up all the rhythm (at that stage the Hutchison brothers who founded Frightened Rabbit had not hired a bassist), and a ton of bloody, self-deprecating energy. The vocals, drenched with Scottish accent, convey desperation and passion, albeit with some degree of whimsy and levity. In short, the album will stay with me for a long time. Since then, Frightened Rabbit has crafted three more albums; one good (The Winter of Mixed Drinks), the other great (Pedestrian Verse), but neither have captured me like Midnight Organ Fight – and they shouldn’t – the album is a bonafide classic. The band’s latest effort, Painting of a Panic Attack, is definitely a solid effort and offers a collection of grandstanding anthems (most notably “I Wish I Was Sober” and “Break”) that will make for invigorating summertime listens (right alongside the new Beyoncé album!).

The new FR tunes also make for outstanding contributions to the band’s live set, as exemplified through a recent Sunday evening show at the Ogden Theater in Denver. Frightened Rabbit’s stage presence is just as beautifully clunky and inelegant as their songs, and they wasted no time getting started by quickly churning through their opener and second single from the new album, “Get Out,” after which singer Scott Hutchison, referring to the span of years between Pedestrian Verse and the new album (and subsequent tour), commented, “it’s about time, right?” And then joked “many of you probably found yourselves at a 1975 show recently, thinking, what the fuck I am doing here!”

Such is exactly that kind of confessional sense of humor often finding expression in Hutchinson’s lyrics that has become so enduring to Frightened Rabbit’s fans. Here are some good examples of his highly amusing, self-deprecating banter from the show. Recognizing Frightened Rabbit would never match the critical success of Midnight Organ Fight, the singer commented, “just imagine if someone told you that you will never be as good at 34 as you were at 22.” Later in the set and having heard several song requests from fans positioned near the stage, Hutchison chided, “you must not go to many concerts – there is this thing called a set list, and we usually stick with it. We have a lot of fucking songs. If I tried to play that one I would definitely fuck it up!”

Hutchison’s potty-mouthed playfulness aside, the strengths of FR’s live rest in that many of the band’s best compositions are straight up designed to be performed live. That certainly goes for the greatest tunes of Midnight Organ Fight (those who have heard the live album released in 2008, Quietly Now! know what I mean), particularly the aggressive dueling between acoustic guitar and bass of the folk tune “Old Old Fashion” and the exposed emotionality of “Keep Yourself Warm” (the performance of these tunes served up the one-two, punch before the encore break). Yet, much of the newer material stood up to the highs reached from the back catalogue. Favorites of mine were renditions of the anthemic tune “Break” (Hutchison even seemed genuinely surprised with the audience’s rousing response to the song) and the standout tune from Pedestrian Verse, “The Woodpile” featured as the lead-up to the show’s closer.

The onset of the encore found Hutchison alone on stage with an acoustic guitar honoring the recent passing of Prince with an abbreviated version of “Purple Rain” blending into a pleasing performance of “Die Like a Rich Boy” from the new album. The band finished the set with the fantastic song from The Winter of Mixed Drinks, “The Loneliness and the Scream,” after which the band rumbled out of the show facing a barrage of audience handclaps with the same clunky and inelegant manner as when they rolled in.

Frightened Rabbit is a band with a devoted following. This makes their gigs pretty special; you know you're part of something which means a lot to people, and not just a run-of-the-mill indie gig.

I came across Frightened Rabbit quite late. Going through a bit of a rough patch at university I found Pedestrian Verse and it really spoke to me. I think Hutchinson writes for people in rough patches. Later, listening to their back-catalogue (particularly The Midnight Organ Fight) I discovered what a fine lyricist Scott Hutchinson is and what great tunes the band have written.

In Manchester Academy 2 Frightened Rabbit didn't let us down. There were big choruses, impassioned vocals, pounding drums, passionate fans, and some dodgy banter with the crowd. Perfect. The band glugged wine and Hutchinson exchanged some wry and occasionally coarse banter. He was honest and humorous, and that’s also how he writes.

The band are at their best when they're at their lowest point. My favourite moments were the old classic The Modern Leper, new song Woke up Hurting and The Oil Slick. Here Hutchinson is at his most self-deprecating and utterly sad, but these confessional moments are some of the finest. The band turn broken heartstrings into catchy guitar-driven music. The weaker points, I felt, were some of the folky ones, such as Living in Colour, which sounded like Mumford & Sons.

FR, like many acts, are best when you know the songs. Hutchinson has this way of snagging you on a word -- the way great writers do -- and leading you through a song, pulling you in like a swift undercurrent He’s one of the best out there; brazen and heartfelt, full of imagination yet unsentimental. Seeing other people singing along was a really beautiful thing. Looking around I saw fans lost in the moment, singing each word, losing their voices.

I spoke to the guy next to me: he was off to see FR in Dunfermline next and then in London. I heard other fans had made their way from Scotland. That's the kind of devoted audience the band attract. The band evokes passion. Sure, they’re occasionally a little rough and ready, but I think that’s a good thing – they’re live and passionate and real.

Frightened Rabbit is one of Scotland’s newest indie rock outputs that has earned itself an admirable reputation for their breathtaking performances.
Lead singer, Scott Hutchison, pours much fervor into his performance singing with all the emotions that his poignant lyrics convey. Most singers are able to cover up any form of accent they might have in their singing, but Scott Hutchison’s Scottish accent clearly pushes through his singing, enhancing the songs with a stronger sincerity. Frightened Rabbit is a pretty straight-forward indie rock band using the typical rock instruments of guitar, bass, drums, and keyboards, but their true skill lies in the way they use these instruments to present their epic songs that pull on the audience’s heartstrings. Frightened Rabbit is clearly doing what they do for the love of the music. They have dedicated themselves to their songs by playing small clubs and bars, working their way up to the respected status they have now created for themselves.
A Frightened Rabbit concert is not usually filled with ornate theatrics, but rather the stage is left open so that the band can perform directly to the audience getting across their emotive songs in a bare-bones fashion. It is hard not to pay attention to Scott Hutchinson when he is performing. He is so intensely engrossed in the music that he uncontrollably shakes back and forth to the passion of his songs.
It is surely an enthralling experience to see these guys perform such high-energized songs such as “The Woodpile” live, which leaves the audience with a deep sense of appreciation of all the effort Frightened Rabbit pours into their performance.

Frightened Rabbit is one of those band names that I can’t decide on the suitability of; on the one hand, frontman Scott Hutchison’s elegant reflections on failed relationships certainly provoke an emotional reaction, but they’re seldom gentle, and there’s little in the way of timidity when it comes to their live shows. After initially meeting with bigger success in the U.S. than in the U.K., this side of the pond has been gradually catching up with the Scots’ meteoric rise, thanks in no small part to high-profile support slots to the likes of Death Cab for Cutie.
Last year saw them release their first record on a major label - they signed to Atlantic for Pedestrian Verse - and whilst they made the accompanying step up to bigger venues, the core of the Frightened Rabbit live show remained the same. The general tendency is for the band to flit between the rousing and anthemic - see ‘The Woodpile’ or ‘Head Rolls Off’ and stripped-back, acoustic numbers that usually involve the crowd singing along with Hutchison’s often brutal honesty; ‘Poke’, in particular, was a popular inclusion in that regard last time out. They’re currently in the early stages of writing their next album, but they never seem to be off the road for too long; look out for a handful of festival performances this summer, after a relentless year of touring in 2013.

Frightened Rabbit always put on a great show. My boyfriend and I haven't seen them since we were in college 5 years ago but they didn't disappoint.

Terminal 5 is a pretty lousy venue but the show was fun all the same. The highlight of my night was when a fellow concert go-er (and middle aged man) Turned around and yelled "THESE GUYS ROCK, I ONLY FOUND OUT ABOUT THEM 4 DAYS AGO ON YOUTUBE; AND HERE I AM, AND I'M OLD!"

Rock on old dude you are an inspiration to us all.

Predictably superb set from bold Frightened Rabbit. Highlights for me were 'I Wish I Was Sober', 'Death Dream', 'Keep Yourself Warm' and 'Loneliness and the Scream'. Boys on top form and a good laugh as usual.

**don't ever go to the Mitre pub beside the Cathedral at any cost. Also, if the Christmas markets are on, do not be tempted to pay £4 for a half pint of truly terrible lager**

Before going to this concert, I was a bit surprized that Frightened Rabbit will play in such a small place as The Pop Up du Label. By the way, the show was sold out. But I found a ticket...
And dit not regret it !
Frightened Rabbit deserves to be seen live. From their first song, the hit "Get out" to the last, the show was great, the atmosphere very nice.
Thanks scottish guys !

I knew a minimal amount about Frightened Rabbit before the show but when they were coming to Dallas I wanted to check them out. They totally blew me away. Great show, awesome interaction with the crowd, tons of emotion and depth. They totally won me over as a fan. I will see them over & over again.

Love to see them perform at all, love everything from Midnight Organ Fight, love the Sinclair, so of course the show was bound to be good. I really appreciated how few peeps in the crowd had their phones out! Great banter, great instrumentation, great voices, great songs... lots of thumbs up.

2nd time I've seen them at this venue and they were magnificent the first time, but truly exceptional and on another level this time round. Great performance from them and the crowd were really up for it which made it a great night to remember. Will never grow tired of seeing these guys.