PHOEBE BRIDGERS AT THE LAWN AT WHITE OAK MUSIC HALL IN HOUSTON
Seeing Phoebe Bridgers live never gets old. I am genuinely always floored at how insanely good she is live, and how equally incredible her audience is at the same time. I'm also so beyond happy to see an artist like Phoebe grow to the stature she has, in that she's able to pack out a massive lawn in Houston now. She's leaps and bounds from the tiny screen backyard stages I first saw her play during SXSW several years ago. Even back then, she had an innate ability in pretty much shutting up an entire room just to hear her sing. These huge shows are no different.
This is my sixth or seventh show during the Punisher touring cycle that I've seen, and every show is better than the last - with this year's touring set up including an even more elaborate and beautiful lighting/stage setup than the last (I thought last year that there was no one that could outdo her sound and lighting!!!). It is such a beautiful live show experience overall, like truly special. It feels intimate even with thousands of people. I'd like to think that Phoebe fosters that type of environment everywhere she performs - PB crowds are without a doubt, one of the most polite and caring I've ever been in. Amongst a lot of the chaos that comes with standing out in the hot Texas summer air for hours (ie., people passing out left and right), she had pinpoint precision in being able to spot anyone having a hard time, stopping her show and getting them sorted, and then being able to go right back to it. Both Phoebe, as well as her crew, did an incredible job at making the shows feel like a safe space for everyone.
Phoebe's set consisted of a large majority of her newest record, Punisher, along with many of her OG's from the debut - Stranger in the Alps. I cried to “Scott Street” for the 100th time, and we all screamed in unison with her and the supporting band Sloppy Jane during “I Know The End”. She said so many times how much she genuinely loved Texas, and how special of a place it is for her, and although I'm sure that is a common thing to say in every city and state on tour, it was apparent that her history with this place was a long and interesting one - something I found a lot of pride in, in seeing her play massive stages here now. She ended the show with “Waiting Room”, a song she wrote when she was much younger and used to claim was too immature to perform any longer, but now at a different place in her life and within her relationships, enjoys playing again. As a longtime fan, I never thought we'd hear it again, but we did -- it ruled, and I cried (again).
Go see her live if you haven't, and if you have, go see her again.