REVIEW: Annie In The Water Makes Waves at Lark Hall
10/03/2025 @ Lark Hall, Albany
“When AITW came out, there was a palpable energy from the band. They were there for one reason and one reason only—to try and blow the roof off of the building.”
As the fall migratory season for birds comes to a close, it’s just starting for regional heroes, Annie In The Water (AITW). Celebrating their Migrations EP released in July (that you can read all about here), AITW made a local stop on their corresponding tour, headlining Lark Hall on Friday. It was their first show in Albany since October 26th, 2023. The wait was rewarded with an incredible bill as they were joined by Brooklyn-based Escaper, featuring members of nationally touring act LeSpecial, who kicked things off.
Escaper, led by Will Hanza on guitar and vocals and Phil Cadet on keys and vocals also featured Luke Bemand and Rory Dolan of LeSpecial on bass and drums, respectively. Notably, Dolan was recently invited to audition in person for Primus as part of their “Interstellar Drum Derby,” which also featured the likes of Dana Carey of Tool, Stewart Copeland of The Police, and the eventual winner, John Hoffman. It was an insane way to start the night, with an absolute improvisational clinic put on when they kicked into jams within their written songs. Their sound ventured into electronica, but also had jazz and funk feels at times which really played off each other nicely. It was all highlighted by exceptionally soulful vocals by Hanza and complementary vocals by Cadet. There were times when sheer technicality was favored to grooves, but they made it feel effortless and it didn’t feel shoehorned into the music. It was a really solid set that had the room perfectly warmed up for AITW.
When AITW came out, there was a palpable energy from the band. They were there for one reason and one reason only—to try and blow the roof off of the building. Right from the start, they ripped through their first three tunes, seamlessly flowing from one song into the next and the audience responded in kind with electricity filling the air. From that point on, there was no turning back; AITW was throwing a party and Lark Hall came ready to celebrate.
The band introduced a brand new song (“Banks”) that was written just a week earlier, where they shared their unserious side. It had a catchy hook and added a layer of fun that was well received. Then, it was time for them to play a couple songs off the aforementioned EP, with “Anglefish” and "Wings of the Birds” providing a nice break in the action up to that point, and highlighting their singing and songwriting chops. The band looked awfully giddy before going into the next song, and the reason became clear when the main theme hit and it was “The Shire” from Lord of The Rings. It was unexpectedly awesome, segueing smoothly into the next pair of songs—“Time To Play” and “Path To Totality”—which both had shire teases in them. It was a really unique thing to throw into their set, and it further highlighted their prowess of weaving in and out of songs so seamlessly.
A couple of songs later they busted out their cover of MGMT’s “Electric Feel” and it worked really well. At this point, I was convinced they could cover anything and nail it, especially since they have three extremely capable vocalists. They then played what was said to be their last song of the night, “River,” which was a more laidback acoustic number that exploded into a giant shred session that, by the end of the song, left everyone clamoring for more, including Greg Bell of Gutherie/Bell Productions.
I don’t think there’s any higher compliment in the jam scene than to have Bell not only come to your show when he wasn’t the one who booked it, but to get up on stage and praise your set, while hyping up the crowd for the encore. It was well-deserved praise, and the band returned to the stage with “Hey, I’m On My Way,” where they rose to the occasion yet again. The song started off with a huge multi-vocal part that transformed into a full on, jammy anthem, during which I could hear some diehards singing along nearby. This eventually broke into another giant shred session that saw lead guitarist Michael Laschcomb pulling out all the stops, shredding and interacting with the people up front. It was the perfect encore and the band accomplished what they set out to do: they figuratively blew the roof off of the joint.
Be sure to follow @annieinthewater on Instagram to find out where you can catch them next and be sure to follow @LarkHallAlbany to see what shows are happening there next.