Denver five-piece Ark Life played Glasslands on September 27th, sandwiched between sets from Nevada Nevada and The Spring Standards. With only a little less than an hour on the stage, they made the most of it, sharing their big sound with the small, but packed room.
Led by These United States’ Jesse Elliott in all his grunge glory, Ark Life’s set packed a punch. Anna Morsett on bass and Natalie Tate on guitar stand side by side like punk rock doo-woppers, contributing the most buttery smooth harmonies to back up Elliott’s weathered drawl. Ben Desoto on drums and the radiant Lindsay Giles on keys and vocals tie it all together. Playing songs off their recently released debut record The Dream of You and Me, this super cohesive, pitch perfect group has often drawn comparisons to acts like The Band and Fleet Foxes, but really, their recipe for folksy alt-rock is vibrant, energetic and totally unique to them.
Opening the set with “Proud of Me Out There Mama”, Elliott incorporated a bluesy affect to his singing, and immediately got the audience dancing. “She”, one of the album’s best, followed, keeping the momentum going. Ark Life shines thanks to their female harmonies, which are reminiscent of a sixties girl group, soulful, powerful and rich. In the hands of Tate, Morsett and Giles, each song is both deepened elevated to such magnificence.
The group is larger than life and would no doubt thrive on a much bigger stage. Songs like “Molly Brown”, “Rock and Roll (Take it Easy)” and “What You Want To” are practically begging to make a huge room of people dance. Ark Life would be an ideal act for a festival, too, and would easily draw curious crowds with their infectious take on Southern rock. Bits of gospel, funk, soul, classic rock, pop and folk all radiate through their performance of these songs, and they absolutely must be heard by more people.
For the single mellowed out moment of the set, Elliott and ladylove Giles joined in on their most beautiful duet “You’re With Me”. Giles’ divine vocals were perfectly balanced with Elliott’s, and the audience was captivated by their undeniable chemistry. When the song ended, the two acknowledged their friends in the crowd for who’s wedding they performed that song. You couldn’t help but feel envious and imagine how perfect of a moment that must have been.
Ark Life finished out the last third of their set with some more up-tempo dance tunes, including a rendition of John Prine’s “Sweet Revenge” (a suitable song for them, indeed), “What You Want To” and “Let Your Heart Break”, keeping the audience dancing until the very last note. It was a resounding feeling amongst the crowd that their set was over much too soon, and everyone was left wanting a lot more.
