Review: First Aid Kit at Rabbit Rabbit
At 7 p.m. on Sept. 9, just as First Aid Kit was scheduled to hit the stage at Rabbit Rabbit, the darkening sky opened and pummeled downtown Asheville with an intensity that I might call “rage rain” if weather had the emotional capacity our human ancestors once believed. Within minutes, fans were turned away from the gates, while those inside were directed to vacate the venue. Many of us spilled into nearby bars, which required sprinting through ankle deep puddles and leaping over newly formed curbside creeks.
Luckily, I was able to relocate to a dry table full of familiar faces at Burial Beer Co., where friends of mine had gathered before the show. Not knowing whether First Aid Kit’s performance was canceled or on hold, we killed time the way people typically do at breweries until we received a text notification that the show was back on for 9 p.m. We joined the raincoated fans streaming back up Coxe Avenue en masse to Rabbit Rabbit (whose staff, for whatever reason, were no longer checking tickets at the gate).
The band’s entry will stand out in my memory as one of the most spectacular I’ve seen at a live show. When lead singers Klara and Johanna Söderberg walked onstage, their silver sequined dresses and shiny cowboy boots cast a literal silver lining over the dark, wet crowd. And their set took on a special radiance as well. Joined by bandmates Johannes Runemark (guitar/mandolin), Gabriel Runemark (drums), and Freja Drakenberg (keyboards), the sisters opened with the title track on their 2023 album, Palomino, and entranced fans from opening to encore.
From there, they moved into classic First Aid Kit songs like “Stay Gold,” “Rebel Heart,” and “Fireworks.” And during “Lion’s Roar,” the duo slung their hair around in sync with the minor chord progressions that follow each refrain, a signature move that proved both enchanting and seductive.
With four stellar albums in 12 short years, First Aid Kit’s fame has accelerated quickly, especially after their cover of R.E.M.’s “Walk Unafraid” became the theme song of the 2014 film Wild. Based on Cheryl Strayed’s bestselling 2012 memoir about her trek across the Pacific Crest Trail to grieve the loss of her mother to cancer and her husband to divorce, Wild shifted the masculine conventions of adventure narrative from tales of harrowing journeys and boastful achievements to more feminine, but no less badass, narratives of vulnerability, resilience, and metamorphosis.
Like Strayed’s book, the Söderbergs’ brand of storied songs speaks to female-identified fans because of their empowering messages. Their lyrics accept life’s unpredictability and inevitable disappointments with humility, honesty, resilience, and strength. But their live show was not the cry-fest you might expect, as they maintain a healthy sense of humor about life’s darker moments. “We tried to write a happy album,” Johanna said of Palomino. “But here is another break-up song.”
The same fans I saw laughing were soon misty-eyed as the band moved into the slightly upbeat “Wild Horses II,” paying homage to The Rolling Stones’ and Gram Parsons’ own songs by the same name. With lyrical gems like “You flirted with the waitress and I didn't even care” and “I guess something shifted, I guess something died / Thought I couldn't change it, so I didn't even try,” this break-up tale shirks victimhood and embraces stoic resignation with a brand of liberatory strength that fortifies the listener as much as the singer.
The duo was incredibly gracious throughout the show, checking in on their devoted fans standing faithfully in the rain. “How are y’all doing?” they asked several times as the stage lights lit up the rainbow shower between us. (The pronunciation of “y’all,” by the way, sounded completely adorable in their Swedish accent.)
After an hour of nonstop sonic bliss, Klara announced, “This is usually the part where we leave the stage and come back on for a couple more songs, but since you guys have stayed with us through the rain, we’re going to skip that part.” No doubt many fans were relieved to bypass the encore ritual. We were all thoroughly soaked, making the chill of the September night even more crisp on our wet skin. Shedding the fanfare, the duo immediately launched into a spirited performance of “Silver Lining,” one of their most popular songs and the defining track for the evening. “Show me my silver lining,” they sang, but we were looking right at it, brilliant as their gleaming sequins.
Was it the dark, dreary weather as a backdrop that made their radiance even more brilliant? Maybe that would be selling this supremely talented duo short. The Söderberg sisters are performers who exude 110% feminine power, whose elegance onstage is rivaled only by their siren-like vocals and impossible acapella harmonies. Their lyrical mastery and chord progressions on songs like “Lion’s Roar” call up ancient nordic folklore at the same time that tracks like “Emmylou” connect their repertoire to the newer legacy of Nashville’s finest country stars.
But there’s something more than musical talent that captivates the First Aid Kit audience, which I noted when I saw them at Highland Brewing Co.’s Meadow five years ago. While they have no shortage of male fans, the young women in the audience seem especially enamored by these Swedish sisters. All around me, the faces of women from Gen X to Gen Z were fixated with expressions that signified both infatuation and solidarity with these soulful, lyrical ladies. It was nothing short of magic.
After “Silver Lining,” First Aid Kit closed in homage to Willie Nelson with a cheerful, peppy rendition of “On the Road Again.” It was the perfect nightcap, leaving us smiling and perhaps willing to stand another hour in the rain to bask in the Söderbergs’ silver linings.
(Photos by Rey Castillo)
