Clairo played Radio City Music Hall with Arlo Parks (pics, video, setlist, review)
Clairo is headlining some of her biggest shows yet on her current tour supporting last year’s excellent Sling, and on Thursday night (2/24) she stopped in NYC for what she said was the biggest one to date: the iconic Radio City Music Hall. Her sound shifted on the new album from bedroom pop to orchestral, ’70s-style folk, and she brought it to life with the help of musicians arrayed behind her on risers while she sang, switching between guitar and keyboard, amid glowing lanterns on the stage in front of them. Her backing band got appreciation from the crowd, particularly on a very groovy sax solo during “Pretty Girl,” but it was clear everyone was here to see Clairo. The screams when she took the stage rivaled the ripples of excitement that exploded when, not 10 minutes earlier, Frank Ocean, Dominic Fike, Hunter Schafer, and Nicholas Braun were reportedly sighted in the crowd; I heard someone nearby sobbing through the first song of the night, “Bambi.” The majority of the crowd was on their feet for the whole set, and singing along.
Though her set was focused largely on her Sling material, Clairo also played a new song, “Nomad,” and a few older songs, which got some of the biggest receptions of the night. Those included her aforementioned breakthrough viral single, “Pretty Girl,” as well as “Bags,” “Alewife,” “Softly,” and the set-closing “Sofia,” for which she donned a rainbow flag. The crowd went wild, and confetti dropped from the ceiling, making for a climactic end to the night.
Another highlight came a little earlier in the set, when most of her band left the stage and Clairo played Sling‘s best two tracks, “Blouse” and “Just for Today,” with just a guitar and some woodwind backing. The two deeply emotional songs sounded gorgeous and resonant and the eager crowd hung onto every word.
Opening the show was Arlo Parks, who released a great album of her own, Collapsed in Sunbeams, last year. She put on an energetic set, traversing the expanse of stage in front of her band and kicking her legs up as she sang.
See pictures of Clairo and Arlo, as well as some fan-taken video clips, and Clairo’s setlist, below.
Clairo’s next NYC show happens at Governors Ball in June, where she played on Sunday, June 12.
SETLIST: CLAIRO @ RADIO CITY MUSIC HALL, 2/24/2022 (via)
Bambi
Zinnias
Wade
North
Bags
Harbor
Alewife
Impossible
Softly
Blouse
Just for Today
Little Changes
Partridge
Nomad
Reaper
Joanie
Amoeba
Management
Pretty Girl
Sofia
