By Vaishnavi Chandrashekar, First Year, Law
Having followed Yaelokre through the drip-fed release of Foreword, since the publishing of their poetic folk duet ‘Kid and Leveret’, I can quite confidently say that what they have accomplished thus far, both narratively and musically, is quite astonishing, and something wholly unique in the current music landscape.
Yaelokre’s work slots comfortably within the canon of fictional bands a la Gorillaz or KD/A, but brings to it a fantastical and earnestly story-driven focus. Described by the artist as their ‘diary-turned storybook’, Meadowlark details the story of four children, Cole, Clémente, Peregrine, and Kingsley, and their attempt to bring hope and wonder to a country now stricken by doubt and the ‘age of consequence’.
Yaelokre takes on various different voices to differentiate between these children (as well as the other characters involved in these kids and their lives), illustrate all of their work, write both in English and Tagalog (as well as occasionally Icelandic) and produce most of their compositions with the type of conviction that makes it obvious that this work comes to us through a real devotion to the craft of storytelling.
What comes of all this effort is a deeply interwoven project layered with sprawling world-building, a strong aesthetic identity, and music that harkens both to the past and the future, ranging from energetic, sensitive, soft and loud, and always, always toeing the line between cacophony and harmony. For folk, it makes for strangely great workout music.
Despite how intricate their published music appears, Yaelokre is an artist who I believe thrives most in a live environment. After all, for a story so intent on championing the unifying power of music, what can show that better than bringing it to the masses.
Following their sold-out gig at the Thekla last year, Yaelokre brought their show to the O2 Academy for a bigger, more produced go-around. Having queued for hours in the cold, legs hurting and generally miserable with fatigue, I hadn’t started off the night in the best mood. I found my terrible attitude melt off of me almost immediately upon the entrance of opener, Ben Caplan, and it’s safe to say the good mood only stabilised once Yaelokre took the stage. I had the privilege of attending their show last year (a show that sold out ten minutes after tickets went on presale) and so had come into this new gig wondering if trading the intimacy of a smaller venue for this larger one would act as a detriment. For the most part, I found that, fortunately, Yaelokre and their team took full advantage of the O2 Academy’s bigger capacity for theatricality, making for a worthwhile trade off.
Yaelokre began the show less as a musician in a concert and more as a theatre actor would do, taking the stage to monologue and soliloquise about the in-universe story of the Larkers, the pillars of the Enkindled, the Crone, the Storyteller and the Bellringer. Papers in hand, surrounded by various objects of some abandoned house, Yaelokre appeared as a cross between a caretaker lulling children to sleep with a bedtime story and a frantic messenger trying their hardest to spread the news of an oncoming threat.
Now with their signature guitarlele in hand, Yaelokre followed this opening with an acoustic set of their Origins and Colentine EPs, intermixed with plenty of call and response opportunities for the crowd to take part in. The crowd experience in and of itself was a pretty unique one too, filled with people of all ages with a great number of them dressed up in the Meadowlark style to the point that it felt almost immersive, as if I were part of a fictional audience for the main four’s travelling show.
Taking the opportunity to mix and match, Yaelokre performed most of their songs with alternate melodies and presentations to the ones accessible on Spotify. Their normally loud and triumphant ‘Kamahalan’ arrived to us a lilting campfire ballad, and their softer ‘And the Hound’ took on a jazz twang. Among those I attended the concert with, this seemed a choice that received mixed reactions. I personally loved it and found it made the experience of seeing them live even more special, but I found my friend’s opinion that they wished they had the opportunity to hear the songs live as they are on Spotify to be a fascinating one, even if I didn’t exactly agree.
Anastasia Baker
From the midpoint of the gig onwards I most clearly saw the growth and progress in creative vision Yaelokre and their team had gone through since their last tour. There was a marked increase in dance and movement across the stage, with Yaelokre’s slow and precise choreography making them appear as a puppet or a Marionette. With their hit song ‘Harpy Hare’ came bombastic instrumental backing, and shifting lighting that filled the room with a frankly electric energy, and this momentum only pushed on with the blue-lighted and melodramatic performances of their new ‘Author’s Protagonist’ songs ‘Insatiable’ and ‘Come South’.
By the end, left both lulled and winded, I can quite confidently say that anyone interested in good folk music, madrigal filled songs and something to lift their spirits should absolutely check out Yaelokre’s work. I will certainly be snagging another ticket next time they come around.
Featured image: Epigram / Vaishnavi Chandrashekar
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