FAYE WEBSTER
Faye Webster | Riverside Theater | Milwaukee, WI
Underdressed at the Symphony Tour
Photographed by Anna Oleniczak
On the warmest day Milwaukee has seen after months of cold and frigid winter, Faye Webster brought the brightest light on the city. The 26-year-old, Atlanta-born music hobbyist, who once dreamed of becoming a global performer, has now partaken in a beautiful journey in writing and producing original music; doing so by leading with her musical instincts.
Faye Webster’s newest album Underdressed at the Symphony adds songs such as “Thinking About You,” “But Not Kiss,” and “Lego Ring,” featuring rapper and producer Lil Yatchy to Webster’s extensive discography. Webster is good friends with Yachty and loved his recent album, making him the sole vocal feature on the album was an intentional and obvious choice. Inspirationally, Underdressed at the Symphony stemmed from writing at home and transporting her thoughts, ideas and lyrics into the studio to get fleshed out. Webster’s chill demeanor blended with her indie and alternative genres has made her extremely popular with the younger generations.
Arriving at the historic Riverside Theater in the heart of downtown, her fans were lined up outside earlier than the tour buses could arrive. Some arrived as early as 8 a.m., leading them to secure the best spots on the barricade.The opening act Before taking the stage, Faye’s iconic blank white t-shirt illuminated the concert hall. Just before her band walked into their positions, a few unexpected guests joined the stage. Yellow minions, popularly known from the Despicable Me franchise. This introduction proves this tour’s lighthearted, yet sweet and innocent energy from the jump. As the intense moments of the first song “But Not Kiss” kicked in, the lights strobed on and off dramatically before immediately retracting back into darkness for the verses.
Featuring blue as the main color of this era, the captivating hues translated seamlessly into the lighting design of the concert. Alongside the expertly creative stage and lighting design, most memorably, during “Right Side of My Neck,” soap bubbles were blown out from the stage. Something much more eye-catching than confetti or streamers. Certainly more unique than what the average concert goer, or myself, has ever seen before.
Opening with “But Not Kiss,” the room exploded into a beautiful light show. The concert hall’s tall ceilings hung lights far about Webster’s head. Illuminating from behind, her bandmates land on the left and right of her atop two platforms. Behind her keyboardist, drummer, violinist and backup guitarist, were laundry machines straight out of the laundromat. Surrounded by clothing racks and blue shirts hanging from them, it framed the stage as being part of Faye’s custom built world. Like the audience was in her laundry room hanging out with her. Another callback to her affection for minions, during a talking break she announced “Bello!” to the crowd which garnered her a good laugh.
Another memorable moment on this night came from the song “Johnny” which is structured more like a letter or a poem. Webster plays keys during this song, while her band’s accompanying strings and drums make this track a real tear-jerker. This tour’s setlist had a good mix of older songs and some from Underdressed at the Symphony, the crowd was pleased to be able to hear “Ttttttime,” a sweet and fittingly sassy track off the new album. The encore had the crowd roaring for her hit song “Kingston,” before finally leaving the Riverside Theater stage.
While Faye Webster’s winter tour has reached its end, there are still more chances to see her live in concert this year. She is taking to Europe this summer for Glastonbury Festival in the UK and Rosklide Festival in Denmark.
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