Edgy, emotional and raw are the words that come to mind after seeing How to Dress Well. If I told you that Tom Krell (lead singer) almost has a PHD in Philosophy you probably would think I was lying. However, after a few conversations he had with crowd the philosopher came out. His music touches topics that many people still consider taboo. Sex, though widely present in music, is the topic of much of his music. The lust, the feelings, rejection-the rawness that goes beyond the physicality is where he takes the listener to. Death, as he proudly exclaimed," I am philosopher, so I don't belive in a God or heaven" is the subject of a few other songs. One actually based of a life event, he explained how it felt like the floor had just disappeared from underneath his feet. Tom manages to not sugar coat these topics like many other artists but rather give you a more pure feeling and realistic explanation of emotion. How to Dress Well played several different songs from various albums. However, it felt like the majority of the songs were from the recent album "Care". "Can't You Tell" is my latest obsession, I had been waiting for the song all night. When it was finally preformed the energy in the room skyrocket. There was no more swaying or texting but people finally go into the music, there was life! Various other songs are slower more solemn, but the lead the listener to do that, listen. Several different acoustic instruments blended with synths and other electronic equipment to create the exclusive sound of "How to Dress Well".

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wd2S8LEyoY[/embed]

The band was one of the most cohesive groups I have seen. The on stage jokes, the energy and the banter with the crowd bled life into the tiny and dark U Street Music Hall. Tom interacted very personally with the crowd. He discussed a mutual friend with a crowd member, told us to say to "Hi" to his dad was walking around and even told us to come see him outside for his smoke break. What really was unique was after the last song, Tom asked for the house lights to come. He wanted to see everyone's faces that just shared his work with him for the past hour and half. The amount of "Care" for every human that was standing in front of him was stunning.

The Breakdown:

The Crowd: What is one step up from a Hipster?

Seen: Overalls that were not snapped

Thoughts: They had a Snapchat filter!

Be sure to check out "Care" which was released September 30th.