“You’re all incredibly polite, and it’s very much appreciated,” 19-year-old English folkie genius Laura Marling said to a rapt crowd assembled at the Music Hall of Williamsburg during a CMJ showcase presented by influential music blog Brooklyn Vegan on Tuesday night. In this case, polite implied far more than a restraint from jaded snark. Audience members waited in respectful silence as Marling—a diminutive figure who made the stage seem improbably huge—expressed her self-deprecating envy toward the American knack for clever banter while tuning her guitar. Accompanied by a cellist, Marling presented a mix of new tunes from a forthcoming album and older songs that much of the crowd clearly knew. Looking down from the mezzanine, you spotted fans in the audience mouthing the words as Marling sang “Ghosts.”
Marling’s set was just one highlight of an evening capped by tremendous performances from two of the festival’s most buzzworthy acts: England’s Fanfarlo and Brooklyn trio the Antlers. But perhaps the most satisfying thing about the showcase was its overall consistency: During a festival whose participants usually clubhop with mercenary tactical skills, here was one event you could happily linger over for hours.
Rain hampered a portion of last night’s 
Wowzers—take a listen to the dreamy 
Details are still very sketchy, but we can already tell that 