Billie Eilish performed at Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena on Thursday, September 22. Opinion on Cyclone Wehner.
Billie Eilish has come a long way since her inaugural show in Melbourne at Toff in 2017. But even today, as a headlining pop superstar, she is synonymous with intimacy and individuality.
Eilish was the last in town in 2019 to play Margaret Court Arena in tandem with a Groovin The Moo run. She had just released her first album, WHEN WE’RE ALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO?which would go on to score several Grammies, including Album of the Year.
from Eilish happier than ever the tour arrives in Melbourne
In 2021, Eilish released her anticipated second album, happier than ever. During the pandemic, she held a paid live global concert, but her magic is happening in person. In Melbourne, the 20-year-old inspires camaraderie and catharsis in a predominantly female Gen Z audience, who sing songs new and old.
Surprisingly, Eilish didn’t emulate other pop royalty, such as Beyoncé, developing an elaborate live spectacular with a full band, backing vocals, dancers, and myriad costume changes. Instead, the singer, who ditched her peroxide blonde locks for signature goth black, sports an oversized t-shirt and matching bike pants and is joined by her multi-instrumentalist older brother Finneas “FINNEAS” O’ Connell and drummer Andrew Marshall.
But, although austere, the show’s production is still dramatic, involving double stages (one with an ever-changing ramp), a track extension, a crane and several video screens, including those covering the stage floor. . Eilish’s moves aren’t choreographed but she’s genuinely aerobic and between songs she’s chatty, like a fantastic best friend.
Eilish favors muted vocals reminiscent of jazz great Peggy Lee, who called her own style of singing “softly, emotionally.” Still, with a decent sound engineer, Eilish’s voice rings out. She kicks off the concert with the agonizing “burying a friend” in its debut, the arena blazing with white UFO light. Another early highlight is the ‘you should see me in a crown’ trap banger. But a big part of the setlist comes from happier than ever, which, as an album, is inherently subliminal. Indeed, if the concert has its lulls, it is thanks to the bad mood of the material.
The happier than ever the songs that resonate are the deep cuts. Eilish revels in her sultry side with ‘Billie Bossa Nova’, followed by a gorgeous rendition of ‘GOLDWING’ – unfolding like a cathedral-worthy choral number. She transforms the Rod Laver Arena into a Berlin club with techno ‘Oxytocin’, the stadium bathed in a red glow.
Midway through, a seated Eilish performs an acoustic guitar-pop suite alongside FINNEAS, delicately juxtaposing the sublimely poignant ballad “Je t’aime” with the politically latent “Your Power” before culminating in his own “TV.” recent guitar songs PE.
Eilish then disappears only to reappear at the back of the room, captivating fans waving their phones as she performs “OverHeated” from a moving crane. Conscious of her days, Eilish is also releasing old viral classics such as “bellyache” and 2015’s piano hit “Ocean Eyes,” originally released when the artist was just 14 years old.
Back on the main stage during the screening of childhood family videos, Eilish initially loses momentum, almost falling into predictability. However, after a seemingly improvised self-care monologue, she ends with the wonderful “when the party’s over,” eventually slipping into 2019’s “everything I wanted” loosie (after some climate action and humanitarian messaging) and l optimist ‘bad guy’ – the unofficial soundtrack to YA fantasy romance novels.
Eilish doesn’t offer an encore, instead culminating with the epic rock of the happier than ever title-title amid a rain of fairy pink ticker. The only disappointment of the evening is that Eilish excludes the happier than ever dizzying ‘my future’, not to mention the Oscar-winning Bond theme ‘No Time To Die’.
Billie Eilish has accomplished something unique. The performance of the megastar is based on his personality and his presence, without any pretension. Like contemporary cloud rappers, she manages to infuse her emo songs with a special energy – the communal experience of live performance allowing her to universalize inner feelings. After all, the best magic is real.
Further reading
Getting to Know Dora Jar, Billie Eilish’s Touring Friend and Alternative Pop Star on Deck
Black Country, Billie Eilish’s New Road Cover “Happier Than Ever” in New York
The best of pop at BIGSOUND 2022
Billie Eilish performed at Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena on Thursday, September 22. Opinion on Cyclone Wehner.
Billie Eilish has come a long way since her inaugural show in Melbourne at Toff in 2017. But even today, as a headlining pop superstar, she is synonymous with intimacy and individuality.
Eilish was the last in town in 2019 to play Margaret Court Arena in tandem with a Groovin The Moo run. She had just released her first album, WHEN WE’RE ALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO?which would go on to score several Grammies, including Album of the Year.
from Eilish happier than ever the tour arrives in Melbourne
In 2021, Eilish released her anticipated second album, happier than ever. During the pandemic, she held a paid live global concert, but her magic is happening in person. In Melbourne, the 20-year-old inspires camaraderie and catharsis in a predominantly female Gen Z audience, who sing songs new and old.
Surprisingly, Eilish didn’t emulate other pop royalty, such as Beyoncé, developing an elaborate live spectacular with a full band, backing vocals, dancers, and myriad costume changes. Instead, the singer, who ditched her peroxide blonde locks for signature goth black, sports an oversized t-shirt and matching bike pants and is joined by her multi-instrumentalist older brother Finneas “FINNEAS” O’ Connell and drummer Andrew Marshall.
But, although austere, the show’s production is still dramatic, involving double stages (one with an ever-changing ramp), a track extension, a crane and several video screens, including those covering the stage floor. . Eilish’s moves aren’t choreographed but she’s genuinely aerobic and between songs she’s chatty, like a fantastic best friend.
Eilish favors muted vocals reminiscent of jazz great Peggy Lee, who called her own style of singing “softly, emotionally.” Still, with a decent sound engineer, Eilish’s voice rings out. She kicks off the concert with the agonizing “burying a friend” in its debut, the arena blazing with white UFO light. Another early highlight is the ‘you should see me in a crown’ trap banger. But a big part of the setlist comes from happier than ever, which, as an album, is inherently subliminal. Indeed, if the concert has its lulls, it is thanks to the bad mood of the material.
The happier than ever the songs that resonate are the deep cuts. Eilish revels in her sultry side with ‘Billie Bossa Nova’, followed by a gorgeous rendition of ‘GOLDWING’ – unfolding like a cathedral-worthy choral number. She transforms the Rod Laver Arena into a Berlin club with techno ‘Oxytocin’, the stadium bathed in a red glow.
Midway through, a seated Eilish performs an acoustic guitar-pop suite alongside FINNEAS, delicately juxtaposing the sublimely poignant ballad “Je t’aime” with the politically latent “Your Power” before culminating in his own “TV.” recent guitar songs PE.
Eilish then disappears only to reappear at the back of the room, captivating fans waving their phones as she performs “OverHeated” from a moving crane. Conscious of her days, Eilish is also releasing old viral classics such as “bellyache” and 2015’s piano hit “Ocean Eyes,” originally released when the artist was just 14 years old.
Back on the main stage during the screening of childhood family videos, Eilish initially loses momentum, almost falling into predictability. However, after a seemingly improvised self-care monologue, she ends with the wonderful “when the party’s over,” eventually slipping into 2019’s “everything I wanted” loosie (after some climate action and humanitarian messaging) and l optimist ‘bad guy’ – the unofficial soundtrack to YA fantasy romance novels.
Eilish doesn’t offer an encore, instead culminating with the epic rock of the happier than ever title-title amid a rain of fairy pink ticker. The only disappointment of the evening is that Eilish excludes the happier than ever dizzying ‘my future’, not to mention the Oscar-winning Bond theme ‘No Time To Die’.
Billie Eilish has accomplished something unique. The performance of the megastar is based on his personality and his presence, without any pretension. Like contemporary cloud rappers, she manages to infuse her emo songs with a special energy – the communal experience of live performance allowing her to universalize inner feelings. After all, the best magic is real.
Further reading
Getting to Know Dora Jar, Billie Eilish’s Touring Friend and Alternative Pop Star on Deck
Black Country, Billie Eilish’s New Road Cover “Happier Than Ever” in New York
The best of pop at BIGSOUND 2022