The basics of The Lone Bellow, at first, are nothing that stand out as particularly extraordinary. Two guys and a girl, some guitars, mandolin, drums, keys… pretty basic. Their songwriting is honest and catchy and they are good looking people. But seeing this group perform live takes The Lone Bellow to a whole other level. Louisville has come to truly adore this band from Brooklyn – the sold out crowd at Headliners this Saturday to see them with Odessa should prove that.
This marked our third Louisville encounter with the band. WFPK brought them to Waterfront Wednesday in 2013 along with Rev. Peyton’s Big Damn Band, and then later that year to Headliners. As their music was still relatively new to the world, they seemed surprised that so many Louisvillians knew the words to their songs. Since then, WFPK and its listeners have come to love The Lone Bellow, some of us even travelling to Shaky Knees in Atlanta to catch them in the front row. Needless to say, we’ve been certifiably hooked.
Their latest album, Then Came the Morning, had a whole lot of buzz leading up to its release earlier this year. David Dye and World Cafe featured the title track on what felt like a daily basis. The album is full of chill-inducing harmonies that are reminiscent of their debut compilation, but with a freshness that a new album brings. What really strikes a note with us is the fire they display when performing and Saturday night was no exception. Zach Williams and Brian Elmquist always end up dripping in sweat (Kanene Donehey Pipkin works just as hard as those two but appears to be blessed with some anti-sweating genes – lucky girl). They all work exceptionally hard to put on the highest quality show possible, night in, night out. Opening act Odessa was greeted by a friendly Louisville stink bug that she almost inhaled on her mic. Instead, she carefully swept it away and bewitched the crowd with her irresistible voice, setting the stage for the main event.
Good news for us and fellow Louisville fans, The Lone Bellow will be returning for a set at Forecastle down on the Waterfront. The idea of having the Ohio River as a visual backdrop for their songs is already giving us the feels.
To see our full photo gallery, check out Do502!
-Brittany & Aubrey
Live Music Louisville 
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