Concert Review: Lights Is A Live-Action Comicbook Hero At Irving Plaza

I am a fan of Lights or, at least, I have become one. From my interview to a private show she gave to her fans, Lights understands that connection is key. She goes straight for everyone’s inner outsider, and makes them feel like an insider through her performance.

Walking into Irving Plaza, the night jittered with fandom. It was a cross between those eager to cheer Chase Atlantic or those ready to fawn over their queen: Lights. It was one of the few shows where I saw and humbled myself enough to understand what it it is to have someone seemingly sing “for you”. Fans looked at Lights as if they had seen an alien crash land onto stage, and speak their diary like it was a cosmic, poetry book. Imagine finding out all your feelings had been wrapped by songs, and delivered to another world that thought it art. Lights gives that vibe in her show celebrating her comic/ album Skin & Earth.
Lights – Skydiving [Official Music Video]

With the same, vibrant red har as her character, and dressed bare as if she leaped from her comic’s dystopian pages; Lights gives off a strange dynamic that makes fragility seem strong. Usually, we think vulnerability is brokenness, but, particularly in her acoustic songs such as “Muscle Memory” and “Banner”, Lights shows that openness is the strongest endeavor you will ever take. It is like leaving ajar a giant door in your heart, and saying to whoever enters, “You are welcome in, for better or worse, because even in your worst I will still strive for better.” That is a brave, bold statement she backs with a voice that rockets and rasps like a heart monitor trying to find a steady pulse.
Lights – We Were Here [Official Music Video]

Lights blends intimacy with exhilaration, which again falls back on her “live-action”, comic-book aura . She really does appear like a super-heroine aiming to show young girls that she can kick butt like in “New Fears”, “Fight Club”, and “Skydiving”. Yet, Lights also shows she only fights her enemies, including her self-doubts, so that she can embrace her loves such as, “Giants” and “Up We Go”. She brings tenderness to her lyrical trials, and has created a sound that warps, writhes, and willows with machined instrumentals. She is also friendly and incredibly visionary. From the symbols she has drawn to splash in her backdrop to a literal keyboard-pizza delivery, she entertains with a purpose: to celebrate self-love in the face of suffering. For More Information On Lights Click Here.
Lights – Savage [Official Music Video]