LIVE REVIEW | Julien Baker – EartH, London 21/11/12 by Morris Shamah

It’s safe to say Julien Baker’s fifth and final night at EartH in Hackney was a magical evening no one will soon forget. The kind of show whose legend will grow and grow with time. A show that, years later, when you mention you were there, reactions will range from hushed admiration to unbridled jealousy.

The evening started off as the previous four nights did, with opening sets by Katie Malco and SOAK. Malco, playing solo electric guitar, started things off with a hushed, warm set that was at once both eerily familiar and brand new. Perfect for a cold November evening, the soft and comforting tunes warmed up the crowd as they slowly filtered in.

SOAK, who appeared briefly for a duet with Katie Malco, followed with their signature mix of acoustic, soul-tinged Irish folk. Where Katie was electric, SOAK was acoustic. SOAK built upon Katie’s tunes with their own brand of familiar-but-new acoustic tunes. SOAK’s lyrics strike brilliantly – “you were gonna set the world on fire / but you couldn’t afford a lighter.”

Both openers did a great job, as usual, at greeting the crowd and preparing hearts and minds for the headliner. But there was no preparing the crowd for what happened when the lights went down about 20 minutes early, and Lucy Dacus walked on stage with a telecaster. Before Lucy said a single word or played a single note, the front row was crying.

Lucy is, of course, Julien’s bandmate is Boygenuis, alongside Phoebe Bridgers. All three are solo performers – Boygenuis is, technically and originally a ‘supergroup’ – but Lucy hasn’t performed live on stage solo in over two years. Something she was only too quick to mention when she attempted to play her not-yet-plugged in guitar. Lucy then went on to perform a brand new, untitled and unreleased song for the first time, and then brought out Julien and her band for a glorious, full throttled rendition of Lucy’s Night Shift. It was a unique rendition, not in the slightest because Julien Baker was playing bandmember in her own band. Then, just as surprisingly as Lucy walked on, Lucy walked off, the lights came back on, and the surprise was over.

After a short break, Julien’s band walked on, one by one, followed lastly by Tennessean herself. Julien, for the fifth and final time, performed her usual show and set as if nothing had happened. 

Julien’s set is massive. Supported by her band, she’s able to shine in all her intensity – not a single song didn’t stand out for being the most immense version of itself. It’s all contrast; switching between light and dark, loud and delicate, hope and despair, although those last two appear to be linked at the hip here. When delicate, Julien and her band as dynamic and soft, and you can hear a pin drop. When loud, the sound is mammoth – a wave, crashing in peaks of noise. Throughout it all, Julien is there – our rock for the evening – screaming or crooning, standing with just her mic stand or accompanied by her electric guitar, which wails and cries and crunches its way through the set.

Julien – perhaps because of the surprise – was short on time, and barely broke to banter, aside from making sure people were okay. Nonetheless, she fit in a full 19 song set, going only a hairs breath over curfew.

Julien Baker Setlist:

1. Over
2. Appointments
3. Ringside
4. Red Door
5. Relative Fiction
6. Favor
7. Heatwave
8. Middle Children
9. High in the Basement
10. Tokyo
11. The Woodpile (Frightened Rabbit cover)
12. Crying Wolf
13. Ziptie
14. Sprained Ankle
15. Bloodshot
16. Even
17. Claws in Your Back
18. Hardline

Encore:

19. Everybody Does

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Morris Shamah

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