Hopscotch 2013 Night 1: Sylvan Esso, The Rosebuds, Kurt Vile

Photos by Kevin Norris

Later during Hopscotch night one I headed back to Memorial Hall to catch a bit of the Durham electro pop duo Sylvan Esso and they killed it. With Nick Sanborn manning the electronic devices and singer Amanda Randall Meath on vocals, the duo filled the hall with exciting, soulful music.

Meath is truly a force to be reckoned with taking the stage in platform boots/sneakers (decide for yourself in the photo below) and belted out flawless vocals all while she danced and bounded around the stage. After opening with the song "Hey Mami" from their double a-side single, the energy kept going as they dropped what sounded like potential hit after potential hit. I wished I could have stayed for the whole set but I had to move on after about four songs. Check out photos below.

Later after making my way back to Memorial from Ironing Board Sam's set at CAM (check out photos with Justin's write-up HERE), I arrived just in time to see Triangle expatriates The Rosebuds who were performing Sade's Love Deluxe which they released as a free download last year.

The band took the stage as an eight-piece and delivered a stunning performance of the classic soul album and frontman Ivan Howard delivered confident, smoky vocals. The band was complemented by saxophone, flutes, synths and other embellishments throughout the evening and really made this a show to see. Check out photos below.

Closing out the night after making my way back across downtown from Oblivians set at CAM (see photos with Justin's write-up HERE), I was pleased to find that Kurt Vile and The Violators were still on stage at the Lincoln Theatre. The band were filling the club with their own blend of psychedelic rock as Vile, whose face occasionally appeared from behind his long mane. They sounded great but I didn't really catch enough of the show to say much more. Check out a few photos below.