Filtering by Category: Gigs
PHOTOS: Jawny with Wallice at Thalia Hall
Live Recap: Weyes Blood with Molly Lewis at The Riviera
On Saturday, March 11, The Riviera in Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood brought the sensational Weyes Blood back to town for the first time in over three years to play a sold-out show in support of her latest LP In the Darkness, Hearts Aglow (her second for Sub Pop Records), which released in November of last year to critical acclaim. In support, Weyes Blood’s Natalie Mering was joined by fellow Californian whistler Molly Lewis who played songs off her new EP “Mirage” (out on Jagjaguwar) accompanied by her pre-recorded music to a hushed and stunned audience. (In all truth, you could hear a pin drop during the entire duration of Lewis’ magical repertoire.)
Following Lewis came the main act: Mering’s five-piece band that filled out the stage among an array of shimmering and twinkling candelabras distributed between the instruments and gear, setting the appropriate tone for what would be a hauntingly elegant set. The band then took it away across 14 songs from both the new album and 2019’s acclaimed Titanic Rising, which includes fan favorites “Andromeda” and the endlessly danceable “Everyday.” Enveloping around these now-modern classics were tracks like the haunting “Grapevine” (named for the California’s I-5) to the seriously underrated “Children of the Empire” (This reviewers favorite.)
With these new songs, Mering has seemingly never felt more comfortable and alive on stage that she appears to be here with a lighting program that accompanies the tone of context of these songs perfectly. Mering’s presence, where she dances and twirls around like the ghost of an amateur ballerina, feels jubilant and earnest and is only helped by her new choice of stage costume. Gone is the smart white suit of the last few years of touring (a look featured on the cover of her third LP Front Row Seat to Earth) and in its place is a long white gown with a white cape and matching boots, casting Mering as a cross between a angelic religious figure and Princess Leia in the original Star Wars.
All of these elements combine into a transcendent alchemy during “God Turn Me Into a Flower” (from the new record) which finds Mering searching for a way to survive and finding that power in the idea of a resilient flexibility while also re-examing the Narcissus myth. Backlit by a single light, Mering slowly spun in and out of its rays which illuminated her cloak and dress to new heights, casting Mering as a spirit on the stage ready to ascend into the rafters and right out of the auditorium.
Later in the set, another ingenious touch of costume design came into play when, during “Twin Flame,” Mering’s chest lit up a bright reddish orange (“Hearts Aglow!”) commanding an audible gasp and then jubilant cheers from the audience. In addition to being a master songwriter and live performer, Mering’s showmanship and knack for creative spectacle are also now fully on display.
The evening eventually ended with a solo acoustic rendition of Titanic Rising’s closer “Picture Me Better,” a somber ballad about a lost friend. Making our way out of The Riv (select merch items in hand!) showgoers buzzed excitedly about what they had just seen against a thick Chicago snowfall that seemed perfectly timed to cap off the evening, it occurred to me: Across an evening of standing together in a dark room and sharing a communal cathartic experience we exactly conjured up the title of the new record— “In the Darkness, Hearts Aglow.”
PHOTOS: New Found Glory with Leanna Firestone at Thalia Hall
Nostalgia filled Thalia Hall on Saturday, March 11th when New Found Glory put on a sold-out show with Leanna Firestone. Check out photos from the evening below, and see where you can catch New Found Glory next here.
PHOTOS: Otoboke Beaver at Thalia Hall
On Sunday, February 26th, Otoboke Beaver played a rowdy, sold out show at Thalia Hall. If you missed it, see photos below and see where you can catch them next here.
PHOTOS: Fall Out Boy with Games We Play at Metro
Last week Fall Out Boy returned to the Metro stage for a legendary hometown show, in honor of announcing their new album So Much (for) Stardust.
Check out photos of the evening also featuring Games We Play below, and make sure to snag tickets to Fall Out Boy when they’re back playing Wrigley Field on June 21st.
PHOTOS: Whitney and Liam Kazar at Thalia Hall
Whitney returned to Thalia Hall from December 21-23rd for a three-night residency to round out 2022. Check out photos from the first of three nights, featuring support from Liam Kazar below.
Live Recap: Foals with Inner Wave and Glove at The Vic
The Vic hosted two back-to-back shows from Foals, Inner Wave and Glove this past Friday and Saturday night.
I got to catch the second and final show of the two-night run on Saturday night, with the evening’s performances kicking off with Glove from Tampa, Florida. I had the chance to see Glove last year at The Hideout, but it was great to see them take their show to a bigger stage and crowd. Glove’s signature synth-heavy and edgy music was complemented by moody red and purple stage lighting. One thing that really sticks out about Glove on their recorded music is the fact that band members Rod Wendt, Brie Deux, Michelle Primiani and Justin Burn take turns on vocals, and that same rotation carried over into their live performance. Their setlist featured a majority of their debut album called Boom Nights, including tracks like “Glass” and “Pressure.”
Next up, LA’s Inner Wave continued to get the crowd warmed up with their mix of funk, psychedelic and surf rock sounds. Similarly to Glove, Inner Wave’s stage lighting complemented their music style— rainbow colored lights and hazy fog synced up to their trippy and bright tunes. It was a cold night in Chicago on Saturday, but it felt like Inner Wave brought their sunny energy to the room. The audience eagerly soaked all of it in, but they particularly seemed to love the song “Take 3” from the 2021 album Apoptosis.
Eventually, it was time for the main act of the night, Foals. The Vic had filled up, and the excitement of the room felt palpable as the intro music for Foals began to ring out into the room. The stage setup included an extensive lighting display in the background, and the lights strobed in time to a booming bass track that literally shook the room; it was like the physical manifestation of anticipation. Finally, Yannis Philippakis, Jack Bevan, and Jimmy Smith took the stage along with their touring bandmates and launched into the first song of the night “Wake Me Up” from their seventh album Life Is Yours.
Life Is Yours was just released in the summer of 2022, so the setlist definitely contained a lot of the newer tracks like “2001” and “(summer sky),” but Foals made sure to perform many songs from their earlier days as well, and the band didn’t keep the audience waiting for too long to revisit their roots. “We’re gonna play a couple of old tunes,” Yannis Philippakis told the audience before playing “Balloons” and “Olympic Airways” from their debut record Antidotes as the fifth and sixth songs of the evening.
No matter which era of their discography Foals was performing though, the band members continued to display a great sense of camaraderie that translated into them sounding exceptionally great. As great as Foals’ records are, there’s an extra layer of magic at their live gigs. Philippakis constantly kept the crowd engaged by pacing the stage, jumping around, and at points even venturing out into the audience himself with his guitar. He also took a short break from performing to quickly sign some vinyl for fans in the front of the crowd, showing his gratitude for the audience. Just before wrapping up the main part of their set, Philippakis told the fans “I don’t know about you guys but we had a fucking good time tonight.” It was clear from the overwhelming cheers that everyone in the room was in agreement with that statement.
The performance ended with a three-song encore featuring “Snake Oil,” “Inhaler,” and “Two Steps, Twice.” Make sure to check out photos from the Saturday show below, and see where you can catch Foals next here.
Live Recap: Beabadoobee with Lowertown at The Riviera
This past Tuesday night, The Riviera Theatre hosted a loud and exciting show from Lowertown and Beabadoobee in the most recent show of the Beatopia Tour.
The evening began with the talented, New York-based duo Olivia Osby and Avshalom (AKA Avsha) Weinberg of Lowertown. I’ve been a fan of these two since 2019 and I was so excited when I saw they were coming to open for Beabadoobee in Chicago. They absolutely blew away the audience and definitely gained a lot of new fans while performing songs of their latest project entitled I Love to Lie (which is one of my favorite albums from this year.) Olivia and Avsha performed as if they’ve been on the stage a hundred times with their respective turns performing. The song that got the biggest applause was the 2020 single “Best Person You Know.” It sealed the dynamic pair’s amazing set and they couldn’t have chosen a better song.
With the stage warmed up and the crowd ready, Beabadoobee was up next to take the stage. With her arrival came an uproar so loud my ears were ringing after. She broke out into “10:36,” which the audience caught onto immediately. There wasn’t a single song the crowd didn’t latch onto within seconds. That’s something i haven’t seen a lot of so I knew her fans were not casual. While I enjoyed her opening song, I just can’t go without mentioning her performance of “Apple Cider.” That song evoked a reaction out of me I haven’t felt since I saw Saba at the Aragon Ballroom in May. The performance was even better than the recording on Spotify. I don’t know what she did to compete with herself but I was delighted to see how much fun she was having on stage while the audience roared along with her.
Lowertown and Beabadoobee were the perfect pairing for this show, from the mosh pits that formed while Lowertown killed their time on stage to the girls I saw absolutely dying when Beabadoobee introduced herself. Everyone in the theatre was having the time of their lives, especially me.
I can’t wait to see these talented artists take the stage again in Chicago because after this show, I am a bigger fan than I already was. Check out photos from the show below, and see where you can catch the tour next here.
Live Recap: Carly Rae Jepsen and Empress Of at Aragon Ballroom
This past Saturday night, Carly Rae Jepsen wrapped up her North American “So Nice” tour with a phenomenal show at Aragon Ballroom, also featuring Empress Of as the support.
I’ve been a big fan of Empress Of, the musical project of Lorely Rodriguez, since 2016, when I heard her single “Woman Is a Word,” so it was exciting to see her playing such a big room. Empress Of’s set began with Rodriguez’s DJ first taking the stage to hype up the audience, and Rodriguez quickly followed. Empress Of started off performing “Save Me” from her 2022 EP of the same name, and continued to weave in songs from her three albums. The set also included a cover of “Man’s World” by Marina. All throughout her performance, Rodriguez mesmerized the crowd with her fluid and poetic dancing.
As it got closer to the time of Carly Rae Jepsen’s performance, The Aragon Ballroom was overflowing all the way to the back wall of the venue with eager fans ready for the main event—this was Jepsen’s first time back in Chicago since 2019, and the majority of the audience members were decked out in neon colors, sequins and glitter to celebrate the special occasion. The sparkle of the crowd really added to the positive mood of the show.
The stage design featured fluffy clouds and huge stars as the backdrop, as well as a round screen that resembled the sun or the moon. To kick off Jepsen’s set, the screen projected a video of a talking moon, which welcomed the band onstage for the first song, “This Love Isn't Crazy” from the 2020 Dedicated Side B. Jepsen and her bandmates were rocking sequins that coordinated with many of the audience members’ outfits, and she kept the excitement high by setting off confetti canons as early as the first song.
The setlist featured many songs from Jepsen’s 2022 album The Loneliest Time, like “Joshua Tree, “Sideways,” and “Western Wind,” but she and her band performed a whopping 28-songs, allowing the crowd to journey through her entire discography. One of those highlights was of course the massive hit “Call Me Maybe” from Jepsen’s 2012 album Kiss— the entire audience sang along so loudly it was actually difficult to hear Jepsen singing in the back of the venue over the sound of the crowd. Jepsen put on a great performance through and through, continuing to dance and move about the stage with high energy that persisted through the entire show, and that was only enhanced by her stunning stage production. The confetti canon was put to use a few other times, and Jepsen even did an outfit change about halfway through the set. Another fan favorite of the night was the title track of the 2022 album, “The Loneliest Time,” which has garnered massive popularity lately thanks to a TikTok trend.
See where you can catch Carly Rae Jepsen on tour next here, and check out the photo gallery of the evening below.
