Lord Huran moves folk music forward at the Civic

The evolution of folk music has come a long way in the past 20 years or so. The likes of Cat Stevens and Simon and Garfunkel have given way to artists such as The Shins and Bon Iver. While embracing classic folk mentalities, these bands have reimagined the genre to reach a wider audience.

Lord Huron is among the latest acts to capitalize on the new mentality. Ben Schneider brought his band to the Civic last Friday to a nearly sold-out crowd. Original opener Nikki Lane was scrapped at the last minute, so the daunting task of opening the show fell to New Orleans brother trio Cardinal Sons.

Fresh off a whirlwind weekend, the Cardinal Sons offered another fun and engaging set. Last year’s expanded play was the foundation of the set, introducing the audience to the Sons in the best way possible. Their rocking anthems “Monsta” and “Drummer” kept the audience engaged, as did their cover of TV on the Radio’s “Wolf Like Me.”

You can catch Cardinal Sons at the Ogden After Dark series on June 4 and at Gasa Gasa on June 6.

After a quick turnaround, Lord Huron took to an eerie, smoke-filled stage highlighted by an antique radio and a light-up backdrop of their latest album, Strange Trails. Schneider and company tend to take the audience down a way darker trail than traditional folk artists did, as proved in Lonesome Dreams.

The set was almost equally divided between the two albums as well as “The Stranger,” taken from their Mighty EP, which made for the perfect ending to the main set. The band returned for a three-song encore, much to the audience’s delight.

You can see an expanded gallery here.