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Few bands are able to make listening to such heavy and sad songs an enjoyable experience. The Antlers, however, are one of those bands. Playing to a busy Scala, this is their fourth time touring through London in support of 2009′s stellar Hospice, and people finally seem to be catching on.

The record tells the story of a terminally ill cancer patient and her partner, and the strain their relationship goes under. Singer Peter Silberman is able to carry so much expression and depth in his exhausted voice. The three piece (Peter is joined by Darby Cicci on keyboard and a variety of pedals, and Michael Lerner on the drums) can make an impressively huge sound- you really would suspect the band to be much bigger. The songs fill the Scala with ease and are warmly received by the crowd, and a short glance around reveals several people singing along in hushed voices to the complex, wordy lyrics. With The Antlers it’s kind of like singing a long to a novel.

The songs all come from their latest release, with the exception of one new one. It was more upbeat and poppy (surprisingly so!) and came as a contrast to the rest of the set. What’s wonderful about The Antlers is how they tweak and adjust the songs when playing them live. The nuances in Peter’s voice adds a new dimension when hearing the songs in a live setting; and the instrumental parts are as important as the lyrics- conveying as much emotion and atmosphere. The band return for an encore of ‘Epilogue’ and, strangely, a cover version ‘VCR’ by The XX. The cover sounded beautiful.