As she said part of the way through her more than 90 minute set, this was the perfect example of the show must go on. Swedish electro pop artist Tove Lo had just begun the North American portion of her Sunshine Kitty tour and things were not going as planned. While playing the first of two nights in Brooklyn Tove Lo ventured into the crowd (as she often does) and while amongst her fans she went to jump for one seat to the next and neglected to factor in the seat’s metal arm. She cracked her ankle literally, fracturing several bones and ripping some ligaments. Not allowing that to get in the way of the tour; she soldiered on.
On stage nomrally Tove Lo is normally an energetic performer. Due to the cumbersome walking boot she had to sport on her right foot, moving about was not an option. Making lemonade out of lemons, she did most of the show sitting on a plush red velvet and wood chair (which she joked was her throne).
A large part of the reason why I love seeing concerts in Montreal is the crowd. Kinda like fans at Habs’ games, we are an elevated kind here. In regards to live shows we bring it. Hard! More than willing to add to the live music how we can, Montreal concert goers bring da noise. On this evening we all realized that many an artist would have cancelled the show, but not Tove Lo. She was determined to go on with the show despite the fact that she could not move around and we were going to keep the energy high. The people at the sold out show at MTelus (show had been moved from the smaller Corona due to ticket sales) danced, clapped and sang along wildly all night long.
Many music snobs write off pop music. Believing it to be fluff and manufactured, not in the true spirit of the art form. Unlike many pop artists today, Tove Lo writes her own music. She has gotten so respected as a songwriter that she has begun to write for others like Ellie Goulding, Icona Pop, Hilary Duff, and Due Lipa. Within the dance beats of her songs lies lyrics which lay her heart and soul bare. Here she is brutally honest. It is pop, but often dark, if you listen to the words. As such it is not a surprise to find out that she has been musically influenced by Nirvana, Courtney Love, Amy Winehouse, and Charlotte Gainsbourg.
She is a fun music to dance to machine. Her lengthy 22 song setlist is littered with songs which, even if you haven’t heard them before, will have you dancing in short order. “Disco Tits”, “Talking Body”, “Cool Girl”, “Bikini Porn”, and “Sweettalk My Heart”. All are bangers! We all got sweaty together dancing, packed in the venue, to her music.
Totally someone who makes you desire to party with her. Cool without trying to be. We all want to be her. A total rock star! Based on her songs she drinks and takes drugs. Verges on destructivity and yet manages to pull back.
On stage she is front and center with a backing band of three guys behind her. Plenty of smoke is always wafting its way across the stage with lights beaming through. The lights! The lights were something with a cool semi circle screen behind her.
Opening act was 24-year-old Finnish singer Alma. Coming out of the Finnish version of Idol, Alma has had success with her songs “Chasing Highs” and Martin Solveig’s song “All Stars”. She has also recorded music with Tove Lo, French Montana, Felix Jaehn, and Charlie XCX. Her short 30 minute set featured the same type of electro pop which Tove Lo makes.
Setlist:
- Glad He’s Gone
- Bad as the Boys w/Alma
- Cool Girl
- Shifted
- Influence
- Are U Gonna Tell Her?
- Jacques
- Talking Body
- Really Don’t Like U
- Disco Tits
- Calling on Me
- Not on Drugs
- Moments (alone on stage)
- Hey You Got Drugs?
- Bitches w/Alma
- Mateo
- True Disaster
- Come Undone
- Anywhere U Go
- Out of Mind
Encore:
21. Sweettalk My Heart
22. Habits (Stay High)
23. Bikini Porn
