#UpcomingGigs FKA twigs in New York ~ Lurid House Live

The UK singer, songwriter and performance artist returns with a dazzling new show.

FKA twigs in New York Park Avenue Armory sits the width and length of a block on Manhattan's Upper East Side. When I arrived 30 minutes before doors on Sunday evening, the line stretched around a quarter of the perimeter, even in the rain. The air was thick with the cool weight of water and excitement. Inside, the buzz grew even stronger, hovering among our heads and up to the enormous vaulted ceilings. When the lights finally fell, everyone, including me, shrieked—we were about to witness the return of something big. FKA twigs was back, tap dancing right in front of us in nylon Victorian pantaloons.

On the second night of her Magdalene tour in New York, twigs executed a beautiful, emotive and demanding performance. The show arrived fresh off the back of her first new song in three years, "Cellophane," a particularly devastating piano ballad that came accompanied by a video showing her doing serious feats of aerial pole work and communing with a metallic winged creature before plunging into red mud. Sunday's show was also intensely visceral, with twigs, her dancers and her live band imbuing the entire space with their energy.

The new tracks felt more of a piece with 2015's concentrated M3LL155X EP rather than 2014's hazy debut album, LP1. Twigs' voice sounded clearer and stronger than ever on "Home With You," complemented by Lucinda Chua's trembling cello. Her dancers wore masks on the front and back of their heads, hands and knees, simultaneously entrancing and antagonizing twigs. "Sad Day" was captivating in its muted drum breaks and lyrics that recalled Opus III's '90s dance classic "It's A Fine Day." During its interlude, twigs danced a wushu sequence with a sword. After 90 minutes, she closed with "Cellophane," standing against the massive black curtain in an ornate silver gown, her voice thick with emotion at the song's peak. "And didn't I do it for you?"

Twigs gave an arresting vocal performance throughout—"Video Girl," "Two Weeks" and "Fukk Sleep," which featured a cameo from A$AP Rocky, went down particularly well—but the show as visual spectacle cannot be understated. From the several costume changes and the dancers' sharp chemistry to the stories-high backdrop of box scaffolding that supported the live band, Magdalene was an all-encompassing sensory experience. All we could do was let ourselves be overwhelmed.

Photo credit /
Todd Owyoung / Red Bull Content Pool

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from RA - Event Reviews Resident Advisor