While on tour together in 2018, Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers, and Lucy Dacus played a show at Brooklyn Steel. When they came back in 2023, they revealed that in band therapy sessions, said show has been each of their favorites that they played together. Six years later, seeing two of the three get back on the same stage was a real treat and total joy.
"Imagine taking two years off you job and then suddenly agreeing to fill in for a shift" said Lucy Dacus as she took to the stage as a surprise guest in the opening slot of Julien Baker's show at Brooklyn Steel. "Because that's exactly what this feels like" she continued as she started her first solo show in two years. Despite the nerves, the audience was there to root her on with full support and made sure this acoustic set would be one to remember and everyone in the crowd did their best to make it count. "Hot & Heavy" was the first reminder as to just how loyal and committed the boygenius fan club is and no matter the context, the love for all the members shines through with esteemed colors and when Lucy thought she might forget the words, there was no doubt that everyone in attendance would be there to help her out. The acoustic rendition of "VBS" could've felt slight without the epic rush of blown-out distortion, but the simplistic setting actually did wonders for the song and still brought the magic through the crowd's unbound energy. Adding even more nerves to the night, Dacus decided to treat everyone to a new song before inviting Julien Baker and band to join her for backing vocals on "Going Going Gone," making for another sparkling and charming moment before she finally plugged in and had everyone else grab their instruments for a crushing rendition of "Night Shift" that had both Dacus and Baker shredding on guitar and basking in their own glow as they knew just how much the moment meant to not just each other, but the entire room.
After a brief moment to run backstage and change into her typical all-black attire, Julien Baker returned and unleashed a towering performance to cap off the last night of her tour in spellbinding fashion. Diving right in, the twinkling intro of "Over" into "Appointments" set the tone for what was to come as she brilliantly adapted her more intimate and sparse tunes for a richer, full-band sound. She wasted no time in pumping up the volume and let loose the total rush that's come with this new and elevated sound as she carried the night to new heights and made sure that there was no question about whether she was back on her game after falling ill over the weekend. "I thought I could make it through, but I really couldn't do it" she told the crowd after revealing that she had to puke her guts up mid-show on Saturday and it was clear that she was ready to make it up to everyone and then some. Ripping through her tunes that are rich and full of emotions felt like a collective group therapy session and helped unite the crowd with an electric force of positivity. The gratitude was apparent from the moment she cracked a slight smile onstage and remained in tact as she tore through her set of blistering tunes. As her violinist tore into the night and her drummer came crashing through in epic waves, Julien navigated the night with driving tenacity and killer stamina as she plowed through her nearly two hour set with little breaks, letting the music take hold of the evening and ensuring that everyone in the crowd got their full money's worth of rip-roaring tunes that blossomed with striking colors and blinding strobe lights, enhancing the show and upping the caliber of the evening to new levels of hard hitting rock tunes. Breaking free of her more isolated sound, Julien did mention during her lone solo tune that she doesn't enjoy playing alone anymore and was grateful to be in not just one bands, but two (don't worry, there wasn't a full boygenius reunion this evening although you could bet that everyone in attendance had their fingers crossed that such a miracle might occur). The heavier songs from 2021's Little Oblivions felt massive and watching her lean into her headbanging moments gave her the true rockstar shine that she's so rightly deserved all along. The rush of "Hardline" or the howls of "Turn Out the Lights" were entrancing and brought on such elation that could be felt throughout the building. There was no holding back on this evening and the reworked songs from Turn Out the Lights felt like they'd been written that way all along. On many recent occasions, Baker has played earlier set times like taking the first slot on 2022's Wild Hearts Tour with Sharon Van Etten and Angel Olsen or even more recently at the plagued All Things Go festival, but there was no questioning her headlining status tonight as she left it all on stage and proved to everyone that she not only has what it takes, but deserves to be closing out every show she plays, solo or otherwise.
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