Kaleo | Photo by Liz Waldie for WXPN | lizwaldie.com

Free At Noon Flashback: Iceland’s Kaleo is ready to take its eclectic sound worldwide

September 18, 2015

02:09 PM

Kaleo | Photo by Liz Waldie | lizwaldie.com

As the full crowd filed into World Café Live, it was apparent they weren’t sure what to expect from Kaleo, today’s Free at Noon artist. After all, the Icelandic indie-folk quartet have only released a few songs here in the United States, but as the crowd soon realized, it won’t be long till Kaleo will be a well-known name.

The band opened things up slow with a couple of acoustically-driven ballads, including the bands single “All the Pretty Girls”, which expressed the kind of pain and loss that folk music is full of. The opener, “I Can’t Go on Without You” featured lead singer, Jokull Juliusson showing off some of the most impressive whistling skills I have seen in a live performance. I wasn’t alone, as the closing of the song garnered an audible “wow” from one of the many impressed audience members.

As the show moved forward, Juliusson moved from an acoustic to electric guitar and Kaleo’s sound evolved from one reminiscent of fellow Nordic artist, Tallest Man On Earth to more bluesy, country-tinged sound. The band ended the show on a high note with their second single, “Way Down We Go”, a driving blues track full of thumping percussion and impressive guitar work by lead guitarist Rubin Pollock.

Kaleo are heading down to Austin to record their new record for Atlantic Records and will be back in Philly at Coda on November 13. Check out a gallery from today’s Free at Noon and the setlist below.