★★★★☆
Dubbed the sad-girl rock Superbowl, this tour de force show beautifully matched the atmosphere of thousands of forlorn lioness fans who had gathered at Gunnersbury Park. Along with an all-star line-up, Boygenius signalled new hope for a re-imagined rock n’ roll, offering a staunchly self-aware and likeable showcase of vulnerability and pride.
The predominately female audience was wide-eyed and open-mouthed at the swaggering charisma of Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker as they tore on stage for the first time during support act MUNA’s ‘Silk Chiffon’. The sexuality of this supergroup is urgent and essential. This is a band defined by women and queerness, as signalled by the unanimous “booo” when Baker asked: “Are there any boyfriends here tonight?” (Baker would later also ask: ‘Who here is gay?’; the subsequent roar that followed was, as in her words, a “palette cleanser”).
Later eruptions from the crowd felt like we’d been transported to a new era of what it means to be a boyband, hysterics breaking out when Bridgers linked hips with MUNA’s frontwoman and swayed, forehead to forehead.
Photo: Emma McIntyre
Irish folk singer Soak had opened proceedings, as had Florida-born Ethel Cain, who murmured her gothic-rock anthem ‘American Teenager’ (a favourite of Obama’s) as dedicated fans cradled her and screamed along to her triumphant criticism of the American dream.
Bridgers, Baker and Dacus started gathered over a singular microphone to sing ‘Without You, Without them’ off stage. An unlikely lull fell over the crowd as the three stars eulogised their family before them in this unexpected, minimalistic ode to identity.
The three would later came onstage, spurred on by Thin Lizzy’s ‘The Boys Are Back In Town’, and quickly displayed their dynamism, inspiring the first collective bold chant of “In another life we were arsonists” over Baker’s full-bodied vocals on ‘Stanist’.
This would move into Bridger and Dacus’s soft laments in ‘True Blue’. ‘Cool About It’ saw a heady surge in volume during the line “Once I took your medication to know what it’s like” between waving hands and Bridger’s intimate vocals.
There was something of a mid-set lull, and each of the trio resisted playing their biggest hits in the solo-focused part of the set in a deliberate, restrained and cool manner.
And with this total command, the silences throughout the set were sincere. The stillness during ‘Revolution O’ and ‘Emily I’m Sorry’ were so unflinching you could hear the sighs of fellow audience members.
The crowd was unendingly respectful and emotionally agile, the connection between fan and artist felt was palpable as they effectively read the room, understanding when it was right to scream and when to stay quiet, even within the course of one track.
Before her arresting performance of ‘Letter To An Old Poet’, Bridgers asked phones to be put away, wanting to look into the audience’s faces as she sang about “the least favourite part of her adult life.” Even then ,a smile reached the corners of her mouth at the line “I want to be happy I’m ready / To walk into my room without looking for you,” which was dutifully screamed back to her.
Photo: Emma McIntyre
Moments of earnestness didn’t linger long and ‘the boys’ quickly dived back into their energetic hits with Baker announcing she is “voraciously clinging onto life at the moment.”
The finisher was their first hit ‘Salt In The Wound’, with all three members brilliantly executing the belting high notes. MUNA exploded onto the stage, with both bands linking arms, spinning around and kissing as the heat of the fireworks and the sheer charisma of these swaggering rock stars was on display for all.
