The Rapture may not have happened this past Tuesday, Sept. 23, but I experienced something more powerful and heavenly the same week, and on the Lord’s day, too. On Sept. 21, I got the chance to see the Lorde herself. I attended Lorde’s second Nashville show on the Ultrasound Tour, and to say it felt like I was ascending would be a total understatement.
Listen, I went to the Eras Tour. I know what perfect is. I know what a great show is. And Lorde did just that. She put on a perfect show. From the set list to the outfits and even to the bare set, she made it work.
Lorde released her highly anticipated fourth album, Virgin, back in June (and trust me, you would have heard from me about it if Her Campus existed during the summer) and it was and is one of my favorite albums released this year. When she announced tour, I knew I’d be there. Unfortunately, I was unable to get Madison Square Garden tickets, but then my roommate mentioned traveling to Nashville to see Lorde and staying at her aunt’s. I said yes, duh, and so plans were made and we made it (even if we did get delayed and got stuck at LaGuardia for about eight hours).
I was so excited and nervous about the show. What would be on the setlist? What wouldn’t be on the setlist? Where would I be in the pit? How early should we get there? All questions that every frequent concert goer has before their show.
I shouldn’t have been worried. I ended up getting in line around 11a.m. and I was about three to four rows back, but once the show started everyone moved anyway so during some songs I was so close and others a little farther back, but ultimately, I got some incredible pictures and videos and was glad to not get there at 5a.m.
Lorde opened her show with “Hammer,” and I was shocked at how good of an opener that was. She played songs from all her past albums including “Team,” “Buzzcut Season,” “Royals,” “Supercut,” “Ribs,” “Green Light” and then more obscure ones such as “Big Star” and “Oceanic Feeling” from Solar Power and “The Louvre” and “Perfect Places” from Melodrama. Then she shocked everyone by digging deep into her discography and pulling out “No Better”—one of her first ever songs from 2013. She also played the entirety of Virgin, which was incredible.
Lorde’s production was incredible. The lights on the stage, the stage itself including the catwalk which rose during a couple songs, the props she used including duct tape as a bra during “Man of the Year” referencing the music video, the treadmill that was brought out that she runs on during “Supercut,” and even the giant fan that she stands in front of during “Buzzcut Season.” It all made for such an interesting and unique show.
I had PCD (post concert depression) right when the show ended, and even though I’m seeing her again when she returns to New York in December to perform at Barclays Center, I know I’ll never be as close as I was. The Pinnacle in Nashville is the smallest venue that Lorde is playing in the U.S., so the whole show was general admission. I’ll be seeing her in the nosebleeds in Brooklyn, but nonetheless I can’t wait. It’s definitely the main thing that is getting me through this semester.
If you’re thinking about seeing Lorde on this tour, this is your sign to GO! Seriously. Screaming “Green Light,” “Favourite Daughter,” and “Ribs” with Lorde herself was life-changing. And I heard she just added “A World Alone” to the setlist…another life-changing song that I didn’t have the opportunity to see in Nashville, but I am so excited to see in Brooklyn (this is me manifesting her keeping it on the setlist).