Sometimes we have to reschedule Tiny Desks. And sometimes it can take a while to get a band back on our calendar. In the case of Mumford & Sons, it took 13 years. Back when the band was touring its sophomore full-length, Babel, the trio from London was set to play the Desk in NPR's old (and long-since-demolished) building, but had to cancel at the last minute.
Now that we finally got them here, you'll see and hear it was worth the wait. The band's sixth and latest album, Prizefighter, ranks among its best, with world-weary anthems to growing older, weathering the innumerable blows of life and coming out on the other side, hopefully a little wiser.
Marcus Mumford's voice sounds extraordinary in this space, backed by the sweet harmonies of pianist Ben Lovett and bassist Ted Dwane. They're joined by a stirring string quartet and Matt Menefee on banjo as they open with "I'll Tell You Everything," from Prizefighter, followed by "White Blank Page," from the band's 2009 debut Sigh No More. They close with two more cuts from Prizefighter, including "Badlands," a song they say they had never played live for anyone before, and the album's first single, "Rubber Band Man."
SET LIST
- "I'll Tell You Everything"
- "White Blank Page"
- "Badlands"
- "Rubber Band Man"
MUSICIANS
- Marcus Mumford: vocals, guitar
- Ben Lovett: piano, background vocals
- Ted Dwane: bass, background vocals
- Matt Menefee: banjo
- Rob Moose: violin
- Christina Courtin: violin
- Miranda Sielaff: viola
- Christine Lamprea: cello
TINY DESK TEAM
- Producer: Robin Hilton
- Director/Editor: Joshua Bryant
- Audio Director/Mix: Josh Newell
- Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter
- Videographers: Joshua Bryant, Maia Stern, Kara Frame, Mitra I. Arthur
- Audio Engineer: Josephine Nyounai
- Production Assistant: Dhanika Pineda
- Photographer: Bronson Arcuri
- Tiny Desk Team: Ashley Pointer, Felix Contreras
- Series Editor: Lars Gotrich
- Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
- Executive Director: Sonali Mehta
- Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson, Robin Hilton
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