It was like a not-so-secret meeting of the coolest people we had ever seen; a common music taste had attracted them all to The Anthem in swarms. Funneling in through the grand front entrance, we made our way to the theater’s ginormous pit, full of flowy skirts, baby tees, and cowboy boots all buzzing in anticipation for headliner Clairo. Little did we know, however, that just before the iconic indie artist was to grace the stage, we were in for something just as exciting—her opener, Alice Phoebe Lou.
Lou is a South African singer-songwriter based in Berlin, Germany. In 2014, the artist self-released her first EP Momentum. Her bewitching vocals and gentle guitar in songs, like “Fiery Heart, Fiery Mind” (2014), are reminiscent of artists like Florence & the Machine. Her earlier music set the tone for Lou’s sound as a folksy-indie musician.
Her music now, following her most recent album Shelter (2023), still enchants us with her voice and soothes us with her guitar. But in songs “Shelter” or “Open My Door,” she has settled her voice in a new jazzy and dreamy tone, a subtle shift from her first EP. The album itself presents us with the artist’s desire for home, whether it is physical, emotional, or spiritual. Charming us, she performed Shelter and more at the Anthem.
As soon as Lou stepped on stage, all the attention was on her—there was virtually no set; just Lou and her band waiting for their first cue. Dressed in all white, with her long, blonde hair flowing down her back, Lou stood out like an angel against the dark curtains in the background.
When Lou began to sing, the audience soon learned that her angelic nature did not stop with her appearance. In her opening song, “Touch,” Lou’s voice washed over the audience, hushing a crowd that had been bustling with noise mere minutes before. The soft, ethereal instrumentation complemented her vocals perfectly, creating a heavenly experience for the audience. Lou’s vocals were silvery, warm, and crystal clear. As she leapt from airy high notes to rich lower notes with astonishing ease, she showed off her impressive vocal range. In accordance with her angelic demeanor, Lou seemed to float from side to side as she gently swayed along to the music, hypnotizing her audience to do the same.
Although the smoothness of her voice was celestial in nature, the best part about her performance was that her vocals weren’t surgically precise. Her shaky vibrato felt unstable, shattering her angelic illusion, but grounding her performance. Lou’s little vocal imprecisions added a sense of intrigue and liveliness that is usually absent in flawlessly performed music. She seemed a little nervous as she took the stage, adding to her already quavering vocals. However, as she continued her set, she seemed to become more comfortable on stage, admitting between songs that this was the “biggest show [she’s] ever played.”
When she began to play her third song, “Dusk,” Lou realized that her acoustic guitar was not properly working with the speakers and briefly paused to fix these technical difficulties. Amid the interruption, she took the time to be candid with the crowd about the struggles that come with live performance: “It’s stressful,” Lou said, “but we just keep on trying.” Lou handled the unexpected obstacle remarkably well, as she was seemingly unfazed and took the moment to impart some of her characteristic optimism on the audience. Watching her face these difficulties with a smile further grounded her performance and made her seem more like a normal person rather than a larger than life superstar. At the end of her set, she took the time to thank the audience earnestly and point out that even though we may encounter obstacles in our lives, it’s important to “get through with a smile.”
Lou closed her set with her most popular song: “Witches.” The first few notes were met with uproarious cheering from the audience as they began to dance along to the upbeat finale. With sparkly instrumentation and Lou’s soft, lilting voice, it is no wonder that this song became a hit in 2020. Her bubbly, carefree dance moves matched the song’s bright, sweet sound, creating an altogether fitting closer for Lou’s set.
Some concert goers, like Clairo enthusiast Roman Frattarola, had never heard Lou’s music before but loved it as soon as the first song played. “I closed my eyes and started swaying,” Frattarola told The Voice.
As an artist, Lou seems earnestly sweet—“she was cute and romantic,” according to Frattarola, and we have to agree. Throughout her set, she gently chatted with the audience, making sure everyone was safe and having fun.
Frattarola especially enjoyed Lou’s light voice. “She sounded like a fairy.”
Lou not only sounded like one, but throughout her set, the singer performed like a fairy as well: magical in all aspects of the word.
