Perhaps, when a concert ends before we want it to entirely, when we feel it is far too short and that the songs ought to keep right on going another 20 or 30 minutes or more, perhaps this is the sign of greatness. The artist or band has done what he or she has come to do and left you wanting and clambering after more, whatever that might entail, whether it’s more music, more performances, or more sweet satisfaction.
Seeing and hearing Lykke Li for the first time the other night was a lot like that. It may have ended before we’d all had our fill, but it wasn’t for us to decide; she doesn’t seem to want to sing her own music all that much even, and hasn’t been very shy about sharing that fact. She’s spoken about going another musical direction entirely (and quite soon) but, in the meantime, she gave us a beautiful show to match her steadily growing discography.
Just know that it was all black figures and flowing curtains, shrouded silhouettes and constantly billowing smoke, more darkness than light. Lykke Li was coolly detached, almost absently wandering around the stage as she sang songs like “Little Bit” and “I Follow Rivers” and “Dance, Dance, Dance”. And the lines “Like a shotgun needs an outcome, I’m your prostitute, you gon’ get some” (from “Get Some”) are still repeating over and over in my head almost a full day later. You just never quite know what poetry will end up sticking around a while.
As she encouraged others to sing and dance along with her (admitting she wasn’t much of a singer or dancer, anyway), she slipped in an extra verse that urged them to lean into their present moment a little harder. Paraphrasing a bit, she sang for those gathered to put away their iPhones because she was trying to give them an experience. When it’s bright enough for you to see the faces of your collected fans and all you see instead are a sea of hands holding up phones shooting blurry photos and blurrier video, well, that’s not much of a back-and-forth conversation. And yet, the habitual concert iPhoners persist. At least in this case, many of them put their devices away after she shamed them a bit into doing so. Baby steps.
Wherever she decides to take her many fans next, it’s likely she’ll do it in a big way. It seems she’s accomplished enough and allowed for enough twists and turns, both in how she approaches a song and how she makes a music video, that those who follow and enjoy her now will probably continue to later. That’s not a huge concern of hers, I’d bet, but worth pointing out all the same.
For her brief encore, she took a few artist and song requests from the crowd. She wanted to offer up a cover, she said, and was pretty tired of hearing her own stuff. When she decided on some smoky Bruce Springsteen to close things out (“I’m On Fire”), she was doing it absolutely right. It would appear Lykke Li knows just what to do at just the right time, whether we’re talking encores or career shifts. And, for that, we all ought to be grateful. And how.
Lykke Li Live Review by Dainon Moody. Lykke Li Live Review Photos by Lindsay Tompkins.
