Mumford and Sons at the Greek!!!

I just got back from the Mumford and Sons concert at the Greek Theater and I am still blown away by the performance. My school is so lucky to have such an amazing concert venue so nearby campus. Going to concert at the Greek Theater was one of the things on my graduation bucket list and I’m so glad I could cross this one off. The performer being Mumford and Sons was just the added icing on top of the cake!

The Greek Theater before the concert.

Mumford and Sons is one of the greatest performers I’ve ever seen live. I haven’t been to too many concerts – to be honest, I’ve only been to four! Before last year, I hadn’t ever attended any concerts because it just wasn’t something my parents let me do. Late nights in the city and unsupervised wasn’t exactly the safest situation for middle/high schoolers. But last year, I attended my first concert – LMFAO! They were extremely entertaining to watch because they have a really high-energy concert with a lot of performances that don’t just include singing. Mumford and Sons, however, was purely musical. The lead singer, Marcus Mumford, has a voice that is golden. I don’t know how he managed to sing for two entire hours without missing a note but if I had someone like that to serenade me to sleep every night, I would be a happy, happy camper.

iPhone Panorama

The show itself wasn’t over the top or overly flashy. There was minimal use of lights that coordinated nicely with the melodies without taking away from the musicality of the band. The set list was comprehensive and included all of my favorite songs. Mumford and Sons' songs don't drag on and aren't too long. They don't repeat the chorus over and over again so the songs aren't repetitive and they end most of their songs with a quiet harmonization that chills the soul. The coolest part was that after their planned set list, they did an acoustic version of two of their songs where they asked everyone in the audience to be as quiet as possible and the four members gathered around the mic and performed. It was magical. Marcus then told us that we were the quietest audience they’d ever had performing that way and that this night was truly special.

I, personally, was waiting for them to play The Cave all night long. It's my favorite song of theirs and I've listened to their version and countless other versions of that song. They didn't include it in their preliminary set list but instead chose to close the concert, and their entire Berkeley tour, with it after their acoustic performances. I lost it. It was the most perfect way to conclude the performance and I stood there in disbelief: not believing that the show was over, not believing that my favorite song had just closed off this portion of their tour, and not believing that I finally had the chance to see this band perform live.

This picture does them no justice but it's the best I could do with my iPhone camera.

I don’t think anything will ever compare to seeing Mumford and Sons perform live. They’re just one of those bands that seeing live, completely changes your views about concerts. They can take music that already sounds amazing digitally and transform it into something so soulful and nourishing that your night feels infinitely greater and your life instantly richer. Listening to Marcus Mumford’s voice is what chocolate fondue must sound like. And Winston Marshall’s banjo playing is tugs at my heartstrings as if they were the strings of his instrument. I am so smitten.

Thank you thank you for the best grad present ever!!