Maggie Rogers

Maggie Rogers – O2 Academy Glasgow

Live music, Music Review

November this year begins, as we’ve come to expect, mild and rainy. It’s an otherwise innocuous Tuesday, perfect for doing nothing after a weekend – and Monday – revelling in our first proper Halloween celebrations for three years. Maggie Rogers has other plans though; she wants us to be together, to dance and sing and scream, and who are we to refuse such an invitation?

Our evening commences with a sweet serenading by Samia, whose charm exists somewhere between her lofty vocals, a cute ra-ra skirt and cowboy-boot combo, and the dance school finesse of her stage presence. She’s radiant as she introduces her songs, vignettes of youthful innocence and disillusionment, romantic fantasy and the banality of everyday life, each received with generous screams of recognition. With two songs left she asks, “Can you come on the rest of the tour? I feel like we’ve really…connected.” I feel like we have too, in pursuit of escapism.

That’s what this night is all about: Feeling connected. Rogers said via social media that her aim for each night of this tour is to deliver a set which “starts with some heat, leaves the middle for an emotional release, and still brings us all together at the end.” This is precisely what ensues.

Latest album Surrender is played out in its near-entirety over the course of the night, giving ample opportunities for catharsis both on the stage and within the audience. Want Want is explosive. Alaska and Love You For A Long Time elicit exuberant singalongs. Shatter leaves everyone desperately breathless. Silhouetted like a phantom at the back of the stage, Rogers exorcises some deep frustration on Honey before composing herself within the quiet solace of The Blue Nile’s Let’s Go Out Tonight. It’s a perfect turning point, a place to rebuild from. In the live context Symphony has an air of Fleetwood Mac about it, emphasised towards the end as Rogers dances and spirals in perfect synchronicity with the band’s tight ritard.

“I missed this,” she declares simply. Like a close friend, a sense of identity, a vital organ? One can only imagine what “missing this” for the last three years has felt like for an artist with so much emotional investment in their live exchange. Back In My Body presents as a kind of reconciliation with that touring life. It’s not always glamorous but it has a purpose that Rogers, now even academically, understands. Between the powerful percussion that closes Begging For Rain and the raw vocal and acoustic guitar on Horses, Rogers mines a deep seam of emotion to wrap up the set. Even before the climax, following Anywhere With You, the crowd erupts into such thunderous applause that it delays the big finale of Light On and That’s Where I Am. Rogers and her band stand in awe, gratitude glistening all over them. They drive the performance to its incendiary conclusion and return for an encore that feels both extravagant and essential. Surrender’s closing track Different Kind of World exists to mollify the end of this night together; a feeling and a memory to carry with us as we walk back out into our dreary reality. A connection. Thank you, Maggie.

A version of this review is published by The Modern Record

Haim – O2 Academy Glasgow

Live music, Music Review

“I wore a f**king prom dress for this show” declares bassist and eldest sibling Este Haim. It’s a steamy Sunday night in Glasgow and the Californian sisters are “feeling the girl power”. They’re here for a dance party; the soundtrack draws beats and harmonies from Destiny’s Child-era R&B, with shredding guitars and synths lifted from a Kenny Loggins theme tune. 2500 people are in for a good time.

Support on this leg of the Sister Sister Sister Tour comes in the form of pop songstress Maggie Rogers. With a swag of cleverly crafted songs, her catchy melodies, hypnotic rhythms and intimate lyrics pull the politely enthusiastic audience under her spell as she bounds and twirls across the hazy stage. Rogers appears to enjoy her band as much as the crowd does; understandably so, they’re a tight unit and the backing vocals especially lift her delivery, particularly on latest single Fallingwater. In the past Haim have had the opportunity to open for some incredibly talented acts and it’s heartening to see them now offering their audience to a future star in Maggie Rogers. She sets the tone beautifully for what is to follow.

The members of Haim have nothing to prove, they simply own the room from the moment they enter it. Their 2013 debut LP Days Are Gone landed like a greatest hits compilation, every song strong enough to be a chart success. The arrival of sophomore release Something To Tell You last year brought another batch of top shelf pop rock anthems, infused with more funk, soul and new wave sounds, and growing their fanbase to the volume of a sold-out UK theatre tour.

Opening with an impressive drumming sequence as each member of the band takes their position on stage, they roll seamlessly from old to new songs and back and the crowds responds with equal – 100% – excitement to every song. It’s so slick, like band and audience have scripted the whole thing together to create a perfectly balanced high. The songs keep coming and the fans keep dancing, and singing. There’s a whole lot of singing. When there’s chat on stage there’s lots of chat, like when Alana gets to tell the story behind writing lead single Want You Back from the new album and it descends into sibling rivalry. It’s important that each band member has their chance to speak although when Danielle is put on the spot she’s left speechless by the Glaswegian reception. There is so much love between this band and their audience.

The visual is really on point. The groovy bassline of You Never Knew is paired with a subtle Tequila Sunrise tinted backdrop and the lush harmonies are framed in golden flashing lights. When the sisters put their instruments aside in Walking Away there’s a glorious moment of choreography. Sure, Este’s so-called prom dress, in frilly pink satin, might be susceptible to the occasional wardrobe malfunction but overall the look is classy. Nothing about their presentation is over the top and that makes their incredible musicality even more apparent. Reduced to a 3-piece for title track Something To Tell You, Danielle switches blistering guitar solos for drum duties with enviable skill. The more simplistic instrumentation also showcases their superb vocal harmonies.

Wrapping up the set with back-to-back hits Forever and The Wire even has the bar staff dancing and ensures the crowd are adequately jived to demand an encore. Two thunderous rounds of stomping pass through the balcony before the band return with reciprocal energy still to burn. In a moment Alana embarks on a solo tour of the barrier and the party concludes as it was begun, with a 3-way drumming spectacular. From a performance like this there’s no questioning why they’ve won the NME Awards Best International Band twice in the last 5 years.