by Simon Glickman

L.A. Club Set Showcases Material That's Electric
in Every Sense of the Word

"We'll be playing songs you haven't heard," said Marcus Mumford before Mumford & Sons' boisterous set of new material at L.A.'s Roxy on Tuesday night, "so good luck to you."

The throng in attendance was indeed lucky, as they were permitted to witness one of the first live performances of material from the band's new Glassnote album, Wilder Mind. Seeing the band in a small venue like the Roxy is a rare thing indeed, and this material will soon be transporting crowds in much, much larger venues.

I have no photos from the show, as attendees were required, for anti-piracy reasons, to check their phones; the graphic at left, in fact, graced the felt pouches in which checked mobiles were housed during the set.

In any case, Mumford & Sons' new material forsakes the banjos and other trappings of folk for full-on rock, but the emotional directness of the material was in no way hampered by amped-up guitars and synthesizers. And on standouts like lead single "Believe," "Only Love," "The Wolf" and "Broad-Shouldered Beasts," the band brewed up the sort of catharsis one associates with vintage U2 and Springsteen; the crowd exploded in response. Loud works for them.

Glassnote chief Daniel Glass held court like a proud papa, and among the luminaries spotted in the crowd were UMG topper Lucian Grainge, Sony/ATV co-prexy Rick Krim, KROQ's Lisa Worden and the sisters HAIM