Live Review: PVRIS, Maggie Lindemann | Eventim Apollo, London | 26/01/23
Energy crisis who? Electronic alt-rock group PVRIS heat up Hammersmith's Eventim Apollo on a cold Thursday night.
Maggie Lindemann
Acting as main support, American singer-songwriter Maggie Lindemann, aka the human equivalent of a Bratz doll, steps out onto the stage adorned in a beige wrap around knit top, khaki mini skirt and a slicked back black mane, immediately commanding everyone’s attention. Emitting pure 2000’s pop-punk energy, one can only compare her to early Avril Lavigne – her music is riddled with a nostalgic spirit. This is shown especially in the penultimate song ‘casualty of your dreams’, where the crowd becomes so hyped, a pit breaks out. “That’s my first ever mosh pit!” Maggie exclaims. The first of many for her, lets hope.
Unfortunately she relies too heavily on the backing track in some areas, despite clearly having a gorgeous, powerful voice and her band being relatively tight. Alongside that, only a minute portion of the crowd seemed familiar with her catalogue, rendering them unable to capture everybody’s undivided attention for the full set. Regardless, they still put on a great show and certainly have a flair for the dramatic – the bouquet of flowers brought out during ‘She Knows It’, a tune where Lindemann vents about a girl in straight relationship leading her on and toying with her emotions, is a great touch. Her set ends on a high, with fans clambering on shoulders, desperate to finger point at the stage during ‘cages’. Catchy, emotive, queer alt-pop tunes – an extremely apt choice for PVRIS’s listenership.
Score: 7/10
PVRIS
Ferocious anticipation and electricity bounces off of the walls the moment the lights dim. An abundance of greenery and square architecture lines the stage, setting the standpoints for the members. Why make ‘X’ mark the spot when you can have giant metal poles in a quadrilateral shape caging you instead? Green lights glaring down onto the stage, PVRIS struts out and immediately jumps into ‘ANIMAL’, causing the crowd to rapidly surge forward. Lynn Gunn looks suave as ever, dressed to the nines in a co-ord suit and hair swept off of her face, the rest of the band following suit, also in all black attire. Black is the new black, didn’t you know? The maniacal nature of the crowd continues, refusing to tire during ‘Monster’ and ‘Mirrors’, mosh pits breaking out left, right and centre. These aren’t regular pits, however. A good way to describe these pits are “pit lite”. There’s no real aggression, more-so a mix of 18-30 year olds dancing round in a circle, bumping into each other like human dodgems. Fun, respectful, and no danger of any teeth being knocked out, with even Gunn commenting, “This is crazy, I’m just tryna take this in real quick. Wow. Beautiful. BEAUTIFUL. Crazy!”. This consideration for others thematically weaves throughout the show, when a member of the crowd takes an ill turn, causing an amass of fans to frantically wave at the stage asking the band to halt, and that’s exactly what they do until they can see the individual’s sought help. Precisely the kind of level of mutual respect you’d expect from PVRIS fans and the band alike.
The setlist was immaculate. Musicians frequently neglect older songs in favour of newer material (understandably so), but not PVRIS. A seamlessly cultivated selection of songs, we see four bangers off of their 2014 debut record White Noise, ‘What’s Wrong’ from their 2017 album, a large assortment of tunes from their latest studio album Use Me and some brand new material. Not only is it a stupendous catalogue, the order in which they’re delivered perfectly creates rises and falls that allow the audience to dance, have a welcome break to catch their breath, and start back up again. The lighting rig further enhances this, flashing brightly and intensely with a red tones during the storm of their electro-rock fury hits such as ‘Death of Me’, and embracing cooler, softer tones in the calm of the dreamy synth-pop rock delights of ‘You and I’ and ‘Old Wounds’.
Gunn, a hilarious front person, runs an unceasing stream of ridiculously random comments and gimmicks throughout the set. Have you ever seen a vocalist slap on a shark headband and chat to the crowd? Thought not. “My mom wouldn’t like this”, she laughs. From a shout out to her cat Petey, followed by thanking London for being so much fun, to wishing she wore a diaper to the show, stating her firm beliefs that PVRIS fans are definitely foodies, and announcing ‘I shaved my legs for this!”, there’s no room for boredom. You collectively feel everybody’s room in the heart break when she mentions her girlfriend (PVRIS fans are not shy about proclaiming their love for Lynn), but it’s not a vibe killer in the slightest. The band announce that “this is the biggest crowd we’ve headlined to”, and the intimate way they connect with their audience reflects that, but in no detrimental way – it’s an advantage that one can only pray they uphold for the entirety of their career, regardless of the stature of stages they play.
Starting on a high and ending up in the sky, a PVRIS live show is not one to be messed with. Humour, style, expert musicianship, attention to detail. What more could you ask for?
Score: 9/10