Show Review: boygenius at Red Rocks 08.05.23
Boygenius closed out their North American run of ‘The Tour’ to a sold out crowd at Colorado’s Red Rocks amphitheater. Nearly 10,000 fans were in attendance to see the boys. In the 5 years since their last Colorado performance at Denver’s Ogden theater things have changed massively for the group. Individually each member has released an extremely well received solo album (Bridgers’s 2020 ‘Punisher’, Baker’s 2021 ‘Little Oblivions’ and Dacus’s 2021 ‘Home Video’) and embarked on expansive tours across the globe. Massive artists in their own rights, 2023 has seen the trio propelled to even larger heights as they regrouped to release ‘the record’. Supergroup truly is the proper title for boygenius. The group have been rocking massive crowds all summer long following their return to the stage at this year's Coachella.
Before the boys graced the stage, Walt Pourier of The Stronghold Society and his daughters arrived onstage to perform a land acknowledgment and share the Native American belief that we are entering The Age of The Daughters. Walt took the time to reflect on the history of Red Rocks and its origin as a sacred place for prayer and gathering for the native tribes that used to reside in this region.
As Walt and his daughters walked off stage ‘The Boys are Back In Town’ started blasting from the venues massive speakers. The crowd’s anticipation and energy growing as the lights dimmed and the boys arrived. Projected on the massive screen on stage was a live video of boygenius backstage singing the chill-inducing three part harmonies of ‘Without you Without Them’. The roar of the crowd was instant as soon as the first melodies projected from the trio. The roar and energy from the crowd exploded further as the band ran onto stage and blasted in ‘$20’.
For boygenius’s Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus this was a return trip to Red Rocks. Bridgers performed here in 2022 on her ‘Reunion’ tour as well as the “Live at Red Rocks Unpaused” live stream event in 2020. Dacus opened for The National at Red Rocks in 2022. While this was a warm welcome back for Dacus and Bridgers at Red Rocks, it was Julian Baker's first performance at the iconic venue. For her first time Baker was planted dead center stage and got the best view of the ten thousand fans that towered over the stage on the mountainside.
The morning of the bands Red Rocks performance CBS Saturday Morning spotlighted the trio. Fans were given a look into the deep friendship that ties these amazing musicians together. This friendship was on full display with the trio joking and chatting between songs. The love the boys share for each other radiates from the stage and it's clear that fans feel the love. Expressions of joy plastered the faces of everyone dancing and singing along. Tears flowed like the evenings rain that began to fall as the band reached the midpoint of their set.
boygenius are three of the most prolific queer icons in music right now. During their performance Red Rocks truly felt like a warm and welcoming safe-space for everyone in attendance, no matter their identity. Between songs Lucy took time to recognize the many LGBTQ+ fans in attendance this evening. “Might as well say it overtly, we’re all gay (gesturing to herself and bandmates). I know maybe a lot of you feel like you belong here because we are the ones on stage, I know a lot of you are gay I’ve seen your flags. But I also feel like I belong here because of you being here. I’m very grateful for this” This beautiful gesture invoked massive cheers from the crowd who have felt the continued societal turmoil following the recent Supreme Court decision of discrimination against queer and trans people regarding a case stemming from a Colorado based “graphic designer”.
As the band returned to stage for their encore, a fan project was put into action. Fans passed around thousands of slips of paper to cover the flashlights of phones, each color coordinated for specific sections of the venue. When illuminated during ‘Ketchum, ID’ a glowing rainbow illuminated the mountainside in a truly breathtaking spectacle that left Bridgers speechless before she wholeheartedly thanked the crowd for this thoughtful and painstaking moment.
As if the night couldn’t reach a higher climax the band ended their amazing set with ‘Salt In The Wound’, one of boygenius’s tracks that perfectly exemplifies each member's stunning vocal abilities as well as Baker’s guitar shredding skills. As the song reached its high energy guitar driven apex Bridgers and Dacus rushed toward Baker and picked her up, spinning her around as she continued to tear across her guitar's fretboard. The three crashed to the stage on their backs as the song played out, smiles plastered ear to ear as they exchanged kisses.
Friendship, love, and boygenius’s exceptionally heart wrenching songs were on full display tonight. The boys brought a unique and much needed performance to Red Rocks that fans have been anticipating all summer long. While the performance did not disappoint, it truly was the crowd and artist connection that made this one of the most memorable performances of the year.
