Artists who play the Tiny Desk aren't always sure what they're getting into. "I wasn't expecting it to be in a big building," girl in red's Marie Ulven tells the NPR crowd. "I thought I was going to go into a little house or something."
Any confusion aside, Ulven and her band deliver a set suitable for the kind of cozy space she imagined, one of genuine charm, good humor and unbridled joy — a vibe that girl in red has always cultivated through music.
She can find cause for celebration even in life's bleakest moments, like when Ulven and the band deploy rapid-fire handclaps during a song about the emptiness of unrequited love ("Phantom Pain") or the way she says "Depression!" with a smile and a cheerleader's fist in the air just before "Summer Depression." "It's a normal thing to feel like this," she sings, offering a much-needed dose of warmth and empathy on what was an otherwise chilly, overcast day in Washington, D.C.
SET LIST
- "Phantom Pain"
- "Summer Depression"
- "Too Much"
- "I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend"
MUSICIANS
- Marie Ulven: vocals, guitar
- Martin Dybal: guitar, music director
- Henrik Bakken: bass
- Bror Brorson: guitar
- Erlend Hisdal: drums
- Viljar Dunđerović: keys, piano
