LYKKE LI
CARGO, SHOREDITCH
JUNE 4, 2008
WORDS & PHOTOGRAPHY: CHRISTEL ESCOSA
I’d been waiting to see Lykke Li for six months since her first single Little Bit dropped with the gently funky Dance Dance Dance as it's B-side. The first time I attempted to watch this ingénue in late 2007, the venue was so crammed with people elbowing, pushing, shoving and clamouring to get their first glance at this girl live, I gave up trying to wriggle my way in and sat at the bar sourly until the people who managed to sardine themselves through the doors spilled out into the bar with knowing, satisfied grins on their faces at seeing this Björn Yttling produced Swede.
The next time I was to attempt to watch her show, I was supposed to interview her as well. But an unexpected trip overseas caused me to skip that opportunity and pass it onto another writer. So when I heard she was playing Cargo, I was determined to go. It was a steely kind of determination: the kind that you can guard your shoulders and elbows up with if necessary, the kind that will get you to the front of the stage – especially if you’re of average height and always end up somehow not quite seeing any of the action because of some wildly gyrating, excessively tall individual in front of you.
Trying to think of some other solo young left field style pop ingénues on the market place as it were, I was hard pressed trying to think of someone who I could compare to Lykke Li. The thing is, she's a tease. And charming, with a kittenish gravity to her face that makes every man in the room want to look after her and every girl curse her natural effusiveness. Sporting a black silk jumpsuit and a plethora of big bling around her neck including a peace sign, an atomic bomb and a kazoo, she’s effortlessly chic as well.
Another thing is, Lykke Li is accessible. After a wait that was just short enough to receive a cheer when it finally began but long enough to get people impatient, she opened with Let It Fall, a sweetly frank song celebrating crying, and quickly followed it with the gently picky guitar of My Love. She then asked, “Who’s the most heartbroken person in the room? Your love will come.” Talk about pulling on heart strings - Lykke Li gently tugs on them via your ears, making you unconsciously lean in closer. I was pleasantly surprised to hear her voice translate into a live setting, as in some cases on the album, I found it a little thin; but even that teeny tiny semi-criticism was abolished. Her voice was much stronger than I thought it was going to be, full of soul and depth, she crooned any doubts away.
To lighten the mood, Lykke then pulled out the aforementioned B-side to her debut single, Dance Dance Dance. And yes we did, and so did she. Lykke's not overtly sexy; but this 22 year old has massive sex appeal. Maybe it's the way she moves on stage, or because she kinda comes across as the kind of girl who’d give a boy a chance if he happened to meet her on the street. Every single lyric and gesture rang true; even when she fondled the crash cymbal, tapped it with her ring during the bittersweetly ironic Little Bit. Lykke Li is a woman child, but far from the Britney version (though I love to love a bit of Britney). Breaking It Up was next, and she pulled out the megaphone which was another one of the elements that - in many other hands would have been totally transparent and gimmicky - came across as genuine and necessary...even down to the kazoo on a string around her neck. Nothing was surplus or extraneous. It was the perfect set list and furthermore, perfectly paced. Tonight was the first encore, plaintive and sweet. On the album, Tonight was one of the tracks that I found to be a whiny turn off of a song. But live, it was nothing short of lovely.
“Sometimes, we give something special to the audience if they deserve it.” Some guy yelled from the pit, “Give it to me!” So for the closer, she and her band launched into a version of Can I Kick It, and of course everybody responded with “YES YOU CAN!”
Lykke's got rhythm, beat, AND can rap. She’s good - and I’m gone. Holler.