PHOTOS: Lumineers, Vance Joy start Live 105’s Not So Silent Night in folky style

Manchester Orchestra

Photos: Alessio Neri

OAKLAND — Live 105’s Not So Silent Night started Friday at the Oracle Arena with performances by Welshly Arms, Manchester Orchestra, Vance Joy, Portugal. The Man and The Lumineers.

Not So Silent Night:
The Killers, Weezer, Foster the People, Walk the Moon, Alice Merton

6 p.m., Tonight
Oracle Arena
Tickets: Sold out

Unlike previous years that focused primarily on indie rock, the first night of the annual two-night concert began with a mellow folky style courtesy of the headliners and Aussie singer-songwriter Vance Joy. 

The roughly hourlong Lumineers’ set included all of the fan favorites, from the overplayed “Ho Hey” to “Cleopatra” and “Submarines” but didn’t provide the emphatic nightcap to the evening. RIFF chose not to photograph the Lumineers because doing so would have involved handing over copyright of the photos to the band’s management.

Instead, the highlight of the night came early, during a great 30-minute set from Manchester Orchestra. Although the band didn’t interact with the crowd, its performance helped to set a high bar for the night that could never quite be matched, with songs like “The Gold,” “Shake It Out,” “Cope” and “The River.”



It appeared that many of the attendees at the arena came to see Vance Joy, who performed a 30-minute set that included his best-known tracks, like “Lay It On Me,” “Fire and the Flood” and of course, “Riptide.” Although his set was mellower than Manchester Orchestra’s, he made up for it by engaging a bit with his audience.

Portugal, The Man was up next. The band from Portland started with covers of “From Whom The Bell Tolls” by Metallica and Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in The Wall.” Psychedelic images and videos played on the screen behind the band, while the band members were almost in complete darkness. The band continued with their big hits like “Feel it Still” and “Live in the Moment” off Woodstock.

Cleveland rock band Welshly Arms opened the show with a very brief set.

Come back Monday for a complete review of the second night of Not So Silent Night, which includes The KIllers, Walk the Moon and others.

Follow photo editor Alessio Neri at Instagram.com/windowofcolor and Windowofcolor.com.

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