Live music review: Nation of Language treated Scoot Inn crowd to sublime synth rock vibes
Brooklyn’s Nation of Language treated the Scoot Inn crowd last Thursday to an 80s synth rock influenced masterpiece of of a show. The upstart trio who got a huge boost in the midst of the Pandemic with 2021’s A Way Forward which garnered streaming fans far and wide. The record’s success also got the band slots at ACL Festival last year where The Cosmic Clash witnessed an early afternoon set at a minor stage that impressed despite the less than ideal setting in the heat of the Texas afternoon. Our staff quickly circled back to Stubb’s BBQ that evening to catch the band present a stunning, intimate indoor performance that turned more than just our reporter into a fan. Consequently on the band’s return to town last week, they were booked at the much larger Scoot Inn (capacity around 800). Already faithful followers could be heard hooting and hollering for NOL prior to the group taking the stage. The hype was real.
Nation of Language appeared on the Scoot Inn stage without stage props or a fancy video wall behind them. It’s likely the minimalist set design is both a function of tour expenses and the fact that the trio’s music stands on its own. Band leader Ian Richard Devaney brings relentless energy to the group’s performance with his vocal and guitar contributions as does Aidan Noell, their talented keyboardist while Alex MacKay provides a steady, intoxicating bass lines that often prompt fans to dance along to the deeply nostalgic music they make. It’s difficult to convey that the band presents stunning original music that clearly takes inspiration from the likes of New Order, Human League and other 80s and early 90s synth-rock bands. Yes, they sound like a band you’ve heard before, except they’re completely original, writing songs that please the aural senses as much it evokes feelings from a past era for certain fans like this writer.
Opening the set with hit, “Fractured Mind” to the delight of the several hundred music fans who made their way to the venue last week. That tune was quickly followed by fan favorite “Rush and Fever” which is also the song that pulled our writer in when the band played Stubb’s last year. Devaney was in typical form, bouncing around the stage while Noel and MacKay stayed tied to the instruments, letting their leader assume the responsibility of entertaining the crowd with his dance moves and emotive stylings. He’s captivating to watch perform as most will attest.
The 90-minute performance ran the spectrum of the group’s small but impressive discography. Other set highlights included “The Grey Commute” then “On Division Street” and the killer three-song encore that included another NOL hit, “Across That Fine Line.” Apart from “Rush and Fever,” the track that pulled us irristably into the Nation of Language orbit like a Death Star tractor beam, the encore was the peak of the performance at Scoot Inn. Not only do Nation of Language write and record music that compels fans to keep playing their songs, but the group has quietly become one of the best synth-rock outfits working out of New York City currently. That may seem like hyperbole, but that’s only the case if the statement is misleading or simply not true which is certainly not the case with Nation of Language who are building their fan base one new follower at a time. These artists are no flash in pan. Nation of Language will be back in Austin again, but at a larger venue than Scoot. Fans lucky enough to see their last two tours will feel even luckier when they realize NOL aren’t ever going back to tiny clubs like inside Stubb’s BBQ.
Nation of Language have eight dates remaining on their current tour including Basement East in Nashville this evening. Head on over there tonight if you’re in Nashville and thank us later.
All photos by Drew Doggett
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