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Big Thief are one of the best late-night TV bands currently operating. Whenever Big Thief show up for a television taping, they somehow manage to summon an electric intensity that comes through just fine, even when you’re watching a YouTube video recorded in an antiseptic studio in front of a crowd of tourists. It turns out that bandleader Adrianne Lenker can bring some of that same power on her own, too.
In two days, Adrianne Lenker will release her new solo album Bright Future, and she’s out promoting it right now. Yesterday, we posted video of Lenker and collaborator Nick Hakim playing a couple of songs in front of a small audience at New York’s Electric Lady studio, and that was great. Last night, Lenker was the musical guest on Jimmy Fallon’s Tonight Show, and that was great, too.
On Fallon, Lenker played “Free Treasure,” the tenderly twangy acoustic ramble that she released earlier this week. She only had one person backing her up; I’m pretty sure that’s Twain’s Mat Davidson on acoustic guitar and backup vocals. That intimacy works beautifully for Lenker’s solo songs, and her voice really sounds spectacular when it’s pushed out front. Watch the performance below.
Bright Future is out 3/22 on 4AD.