On September 26, Lorde brought her triumphant fourth tour, Ultrasound, to Boston. Performing a sold-out show at TD Garden, she certainly rose to the occasion, delivering the show of a lifetime, with songs spanning all four of her studio albums. I laughed, I cried, I danced, and now I hope to recite the life-changing experience.
As the show unfolded, it revealed itself as a perfect mix of spectacle and intimacy, with Lorde dancing without abandon to every song of the night. It was uninhibited, wild, and bare, reflecting the at times shocking authenticity of her album Virgin, released earlier this year. The screens projected up close images of Lorde as she performed, videoed by people onstage with her. This expertly done close camera work allowed the audience to see her every expression, giving the sense that you were getting a true look into the mind and heart of the massive pop star who has been shamelessly real since the beginning. This made the highly technical and impressive production still feel grounded in the emotion of the performance.
The setlist included fan favorites, deep cuts, and massive hits from all four of her studio albums, featuring mainly songs from her newest album, Virgin. The arena was electric as the first note of “Hammer” rang out, and the energy stayed high throughout. The setlist was clearly divided to take the audience on a journey. She first shared playing some of her hits from Pure Heroine, Melodrama, and Virgin, including “Royals,” “Broken Glass,” “Buzzcut Season,” and “Perfect Places.” After “Perfect Places,” more props were introduced, with a screen and a treadmill being used throughout the next few songs, including “Supercut,” which was certainly one of the highlights of the show. This portion of the show, ending with “The Lourve,” gives the sense that the show is moving towards some of the more intimate, slow songs of her career.
The slower portion of the setlist started with the stage being bathed with colors of yellow, green, and blue, as Lorde performed two deep cuts from her more subdued third album, Solar Power. This part of the show brought one of the best surprises for me personally, as one of my favorite lesser-known songs, “Big Star,” made the cut. Lorde then sang what is, in my opinion, her two most vulnerable songs ever, “Clearblue” and “Liability,” and then performed “Man of the Year.” This was the culmination of her gradual stripping down of clothes, as during this song, she was only wearing tape and jeans like in the iconic music video. The gradual stripping of clothes culminating here reflected that this was the most stripped down and honest portion of the show.
The next song marked a turn away from the slower portion of the show, with Lorde performing some of the bigger hits from her records, such as “Team” and “What Was That.” After playing her huge hit “Green Light,” she changed into a light-up vest and made her way through the audience. As the camera followed her, she performed the final and powerful song from Virgin “David.” The footage of her walking through the audience was interspersed with footage from the rehearsal, creating a striking visual.
Finally, she made her way to a small second stage where she had a surprise addition to the setlist of “A World Alone,” a fan favorite that left all of the arena “dancing in a world alone” with each other. Finally, she closed out with a huge hit, “Ribs.” These two songs, which feel at their core about friendship and enjoying time with those close to you, left the audience dancing with each other as Lorde danced on a stage that felt less disconnected from the crowd compared to the main stage. This left the sense that all of us in the room were almost dancing together, bonded by our shared love of this triumphant musician.
All in all, this was certainly one of the best tours that I have been to. The production was elaborate and would have left anyone awe-struck with the spectacle, but she was able to balance this with such a clearly authentic performance. Throughout the show, she was able to please the audience by playing fan favorites, while still staying true to herself and telling a story throughout the performance.
In my opinion, Virgin is the most raw and honest album she’s released thus far, and the performance reflected this. Throughout the years, Lorde has been nothing but authentic to herself, sometimes to her detriment (crowd-shushing anyone?), but this is what makes her music and performance so captivating, and I believe that Ultrasound tour shows that as long as she stays true to herself, Lorde will produce something amazing.