Live Review: Okkervil River

For an established group, having formed in 1998 and out touring their seventh studio album, The Silver Gymnasium, there was a refreshing quality to Okkervil River's performance at Oxford Art Factory, their unfettered enthusiasm more akin to a young, fledgling band than that of seasoned performers. This may have something to do with the success of The Silver Gymnasium, the band's highest-charting album in the States to date, but regardless of where the enthusiasm was coming from, it remained a highlight through a well-rounded set that successfully referenced the band's hearty lifespan.

Frontman Will Sheff, an absolute knock-out 'Where's Wally?' look-alike, energetically ploughed through a selection of songs as diverse in sentiment as they were in catalogue order, with a charming awkwardness that seemed to captivate the crowd from the get-go. From the playful '80s synths on the cheerful Pink-Slips to the bittersweet, horn-filled chant of John Allyn Smith Sails, Sheff successfully proved he has the gusto to live up to his undeniable talent as a lyricist. The audience (weirdly a very high proportion of whom were middle-aged men striking an almost eerie resemblance to band member Howard Draper) swayed blissfully through the cosy chords of Kansas City, only to be vigorously pulled back up by the ever popular Our Life Is Not A Movie Or Maybe.

Their three-song encore began with an achingly beautiful rendition of A Stone by Sheff that managed to still a very excited crowd from the opening chords, and ended with a rousing rendition of Unless It's Kicks – the band successfully encompassing within that three-song time limit their ability to tug at whichever audience heart strings they wanted to.