Hazy Scenes and Vibrant Dreams: Alvvays in Boston
“I can’t speak for the coming days, but today is good.” Perhaps unintentionally, with this utterance Molly Rankin perfectly summarized how I feel whenever I listen to Alvvays. It was the concluding remark of her comment on the fact that the group’s show at Paradise Rock on October 3 was the first of their US tour. And it was a great way to kick off a tour. The show was completely sold out, but I was lucky enough to get in and experience the elation that is Alvvays’ dreampop.
The choice in opener was a bit of a surprise - Saved By a Waif, the penultimate track off their sophomore album, Antisocialities, released last month on Polyvinyl Records. The album itself feels wholly more experimental than their debut, Alvvays, and Saved By a Waif is one of the best examples of the band’s incorporation of a rockier sound. This caught some of the audience (myself included) a little off guard, but definitely set the stage for a night full of high-energy jams. They continued on to play Plimsoll Punks, one of the singles released off the album, and got everyone dancing around.
The entire night felt like something out of a dream. Molly’s ethereal vocals aside, the crew lit the stage with dynamic projections that shifted with every change of mood. This almost put the band behind a screen, seeming to put them at a distance that served only to underscore the sense of mystification afforded by the incredible quality of music emanating from their persons. Combined with the fact that they sounded almost exactly like their recordings, there were times when I felt that I was just watching a music video with the volume blasted. Then a song would end, Molly would speak, the people around me would react, and I would instantly be reminded just how beautifully real the whole experience was.
Although I danced and sung my heart out to each and every song of the set, Forget About Life takes the cake for favorite song of the night. I went into the show with a bunch of favorites I was hoping the band would play (and they hit all of them), but witnessing Forget About Life live changed my perspective on the song forever. The instrumentals kicked in first, subduing the crowd and setting the stage for Molly transport us out of this life and into another. Something about the solemnity, the simplicity, of the whole experience made me feel like I was getting wrapped up in a huge hug of ambience and slipped into a dreamy subconsciousness. Then the instrumentals upped their presence, lifting me out of that liminal state and ushering in my new reality with the Eastern-feeling funky bridge that got everyone vibing.
As if all of this wasn’t enough, the band treated us to not one, not two, but three additional songs in an encore. Staying true to their indie pop roots, they kept it engaging but effortlessly cool. As they took their final walk off the stage, all I could hear around me were whispers of “that was so good,” “they were so good,” and “wow.” With their dreamy tunes and ever so laid back stage presence, Alvvays treated Boston with a night that will always be remembered. I can only imagine that the rest of the tour will be equally as great.
written by: Maria Khoudary
photos by: Ermol Sheppard, Maria Khoudary