OK music lovers, we all know, with the exception of 80s pop sensations A-Ha, that Norway is the original home of the nil-pointers and, apart from sending us the occasional quality centre-forward, we don't hear much from that particular corner of Scandinavia. Well, all that is about to change with the unlikely duo Kings of Convenience, the finest Norwegian arrival since Ole Gunnar Solskaer first touched down at Old Trafford.
Although your correspondent would normally prefer a barium enema to an enforced session with the majority of the New Acoustic Movement plodders, there's something about a band that look and sound like Simon and Garfunkel that's pretty irresistible.
There's a tall one with crap hair (Erlend) and a shorter guy who looks more or less normal (Eirik) and together they conjure tunes and harmonies straight from Valhalla. 'Riot on an Empty Street' is a revelation and although there are plenty of people nattering at the back those paying attention know that something rather magical is being created. A stunning version of Tom Petty's 'Free Falling' steals the show, even though Erlend freely admits, "We only know the first verse - yet," humming through a Radio 2 classic never sounded so good.
Which leaves headliners Low in the unenviable position of following this surprise hit. And despite playing a broad selection of favourites, including plenty from their superb new album 'Things We Lost in the Fire', Low's melodies are too fragile for the cavernous Shepherd's Bush Empire and the restless crowd within it. Every song's leaden pace and stony-faced severity seem misplaced after the KOC's (their acronym, not mine) joy-filled antics. Recent single 'Dinosaur Act' ups the tempo and volume dramatically, and it's a damn fine song too, but surrounded by identikit three-chord dirges, it's not long before the conversations from the bar drown out the noise from the stage.
Not that there's anything wrong with the pristine harmonies of Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker but as time itself slows to a gradual trickle, there's little to do but lose yourself in their music. Some might remember Low's performance for its timeless perfection, subtle interplay and poignant poetry. Personally, I was bored senseless. Victory, as ever, to the plucky underdogs from Norway.
