A “Little Bit” of Lykke Li

Last night, Annalee and I saw Swedish darling Lykke Li at the Hawthorne Theater here in Portland. The show included a kazoo solo, a megaphone, and covers of both Lil Wayne and Tribe Called Quest songs. Super!

Another Swedish band, Li’s friends Wildbirds & Peacedrums opened up the show. Made up of a cute-as-can-be co-ed duo, Wildbirds & Peacedrums rocked way harder than their name might suggest. The crowd was loving their snare drum solos, and we were too!

Although we had anticipated a crowd made up of mostly hipster teens (the Hawthorne Theater is an all-ages venue) there were tons of older folks in the mix. (By older, of course, we mean over 21.) The Lykke Li fans were mainly ladies, accompanied by dates both male and female. Although ironic accessories abounded, once Li took the stage the posturing ended and the sing-alongs began.

Li played all of the crowd favorites off of her album Youth Novels, including “Dance Dance Dance,” “Tonight,” and “Little Bit.” My camera battery died right before the show started, but here is a video of Li playing “Little Bit” at the Commodore in Vancouver two nights ago. Don’t worry though; this performance looks very similar to last night’s Portland show, right down to Li’s outfit! (Last night she wore her hair in a braid, though.)

Audience members were treated to the typical Lykke Li preciousness, and we loved every minute of it. She wore her signature jingle-bell-and-kazoo necklace and jumped and danced around like nobody’s business, encouraging the crowd to join her. Although Li looks like a miniature Heidi Klum and has a voice to match, her music ranges from twee to much more hard-hitting than that. Some live-show highlights included her cover of Lil Wayne’s “A Millie” and A Tribe Called Quest’s “Can I Kick It?”

Yes, you can!