Mumford and Sons

Is “indie movie trailer” its own genre yet? It’s hard to hear the final minute of a song like “The Cave” by London’s Mumford & Sons, marked by a soaring yet contemplative refrain of “I will change my ways,” without envisioning it accompanying scenes of, say, Jesse Eisenberg and Kat Dennings learning about life and love in the latest coming-of-age film for English majors to obsess over. First single “Little Lion Man” follows the same formula: at first masquerading as slight indie folk, it builds to an ostentatious crescendo that practically screams “this is important.” Even if they’re not film trailer regulars yet, the four-piece—led by Marcus Mumford; the rest of the band aren’t his sons, but they’re probably somebody’s sons—is still plenty successful, currently on a US tour littered with sold-out shows. Ray Davies, legendary lead singer of the Kinks, even tapped Mumford & Sons to work with him on an upcoming compilation album. Not everyone is charmed by their alternately gentle/toe-tapping melodies, Britishness, and the way they say “really fucked it up this time” on “Little Lion Man” and their debut full-length Sigh No More has gotten fairly mixed reviews. Webzine Drowned In Sound called it “nothing more than an empty shell of a half-decent record,” which is, like, a double burn. —
Mon., June 7, 8 p.m., 2010