Swedish Post Rock returns to Amsterdam
Published
Ef has flown under the radar for the last few years, yet their recent visit to the Netherlands to play Incubate festival and a gig in Amsterdam was no quiet affair.
Ef are a Swedish post rock band who were advertised as similar to the likes of Sigur Rós and Mogwai. A friend also described them to me as “Bon Iver without the lyrics”, so naturally I was intrigued.
I saw their show at Sugarfactory in Amsterdam, the last of their mini euro tour. The opening of the show was very dramatic, with curtains drawn and an epic lightshow to welcome the band to the stage.
A small yet dedicated crowd applauded their arrival and as they began I could see what the fuss was about. For the next hour a wall of noise filled the venue, but this should not to be mistaken for a boring set.
The audience was treated to layered sounds, a plethora of voices and tight harmonies, some animalistic percussion and lead singer Tomas Torsson’s ethereal vocals. Ef combines the heavy sounds of a rock band with the fragility and excitement of eclectic samples.
At one point there was even a mouth accordion solo. The use of pre-recorded interludes allowed the set flowed well, giving the performance a polished feel. Like many bands with heavy instrumentals, I found their sound to be more complete in a live setting.
Many of the songs were heavily laced with emotion and the bands live performance reflected this. I did, however find this to be slightly mawkish and sometimes exaggerated.
Overall I thought the performance was musically tight, visually enchanting and most importantly, entertaining. There was an ebb and flow to the show which crated natural crescendos, taking the audience down an auditory rabbit hole, something I feel is emblematic of the post-rock genre.
