On an uncharacteristically warm late September night, Faye Webster and opener Mei Ehara took the stage for the Underdressed at the Symphony tour stop at the Greek Theater. Mei Ehara is a Japanese pop artist on tour with Webster, who first worked with Webster on the track “Overslept” from I Know I’m Funny haha. For the first time live, she got to play that song with Mei Ehara, which was gorgeous and a treat to hear. Mei Ehara’s entrancing set with a performance that made me a fast fan of the group having not known much about prior. The songs were mostly in Japanese and an excellent starting point for anyone looking to get into Japanese indie.
Faye Webster took the stage a little past 9:15pm, with an excellent show full of nothing but good vibes. The stage showcased a pseudo-laundromat full of oversized washing machines and tee-shirts, going full out with the theme of the tour and most recent release of the same name. For the band, Webster featured a saxophone and string section, along with her touring band. The energy of the group was palpable, with the entire group playing off of each other and working in a way that few bands are able to achieve. The visuals of the show centered around the Underdressed at the Symphony tour title, with washing machines and a giant tee-shirt being prominently displayed. On the giant tee, she displayed graphics, with lights corresponding to the music (the changing colors matching the tempos of the songs), and in conjunction with her minions’ collaboration, she had her minion greet the crowd and close the show. In the middle of the show, she brought out a bunch of yo-yo performers to showcase their skills for the audience ahead of her performance at Zellerbach Hall. At Zellerbach the next day, she hosted a yo-yo competition and played an intimate acoustic set. Webster is a self-described yo-yo mega fan, performer, and hosted the event to share her love of yo-yos and bring the sport more into the mainstream.
Her music was a dreamy performance bringing to life her tracks which carry an aura that permeates the space between us all, and in seeing her live, this magic was brought to a new level. She played a new song titled “After the First Kiss” which seems to go back to the stylings of I Know I’m Funny haha. She focused primarily on her most recent release but played tracks from the entire discography. Particular favorites of mine from the show were “Right Side of My Neck”, and “Lego Ring” with the latter having a custom video game simulator associated with it. She also played “Johnny (Reprise)” which was interesting to see live as a large portion of it features spoken word reflecting on her relationship. It was one of the moments in the show that the entire audience took a collective breath and got to connect in a way that was just the poetry and bass line. Unfortunately, the set was also full of disruptions that broke some of the magic as people in the audience passed out in the pit. Webster paused each time to ensure her fan’s safety and had security pass out water for fans safety. She had a short break from the show and returned for a two-song encore finishing with “Kingston”. Seeing Webster live was a dream come true and with her talent to turn a sold out show at the Greek into what feels like an intimate performance, I could not recommend seeing her live more.
Review and photography by Sophia Risin