Lykke Li

Quickly selling out the Music Hall of Williamsburg (not to mention the Bowery Ballroom – tonight’s show) might not be the greatest thing any musician has ever done, but I’ll be darned if that ain’t pretty good for a 22-year-old newcomer. Swedish darling Lykke Li brought her charming combination of teenage innocence and confident conviction galloping onto the stage. Not still for even a second, she shook her head and shoulders in a possessed sort of acquiescence to the rhythms of her hits, making it difficult indeed for the packed audience not to move around with her. Whether you enjoy her cutesy rasp or not, this girl proved she was meant to be a performer with her endless energy and singular style – around her neck she wore a treasure chest of accessories and toys, mostly notably a shiny silver kazoo used to buzz out the sax solo on “Dance Dance Dance.”

But that little zinger was later upstaged by a megaphone. Though it caused a few deafening rings as she held it up to the mic during “Breaking It Up,” the number was successfully delivered with the authority that such a tool demands. This being possibly the catchiest song on her debut Youth Novels, the song had most of the crowd dancing gleefully as Li megaphoned over the track of kiddie choir vocals pouring off the stage. An unexpected bonus was the beefing up of the set with some fine covers, like Vampire Weekend’s “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa,” which seemed remarkably appropriate for her somehow, and the old soul classic “After Laughter (Come Tears).” She even leap into the audience for some good ‘ol Iggy Pop, though her intrusion caused the crowd to part rather than absorb, leading her to exclam “I’m not Jesus, dance with me!” In yet another show of massive energy, some breaks in songs had her leaping to grab drumsticks so she could click and clack along with her band, a move that did justice nicely to the “anything goes” percussion on the album. Though I may not be able to pronounce her name, this girl is pretty darn engaging.