Concert Review/Photos: Lykke Li @ Union Transfer
Please note: This article is published as an archive copy from Philadelphia City Paper. My City Paper is not affiliated with Philadelphia City Paper. Philadelphia City Paper was an alternative weekly newspaper in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The last edition was published on October 8, 2015.
Shrouded in shadow behind translucent curtains.
[ 10/1 ] October began with a taste of Swedish glamor at Union Transfer on Wednesday. Playing in support of her catchy 2014 I Never Learn, Lykke Li had the Philly crowd entranced.
Soulful sadness is Li’s trademark, and she doused the room with longing vocals, haunting lighting and an air of unattainability. With backlighting flooding the venue, Li entered in silhouette and belted out the title track to I Never Learn. She walked around the stage, sometimes frantically but mostly with grace and purpose. Her band was often shrouded in shadow behind translucent curtains, while she ventured from light to darkness. Her pop beats, matched with her powerful voice, made songs like “No Rest for the Wicked” profound. Her cover of Fleetwood Mac’s “Silver Springs” was inventive and her suggestion to the crowd to feel like the character in “Never Gonna Love Again” was hard to pass up in the moment.
Rapper Mapei opened. Playing behind her 2014 Hey Hey, she got the crowd grooving and in the mood for the rhythms of Lykke Li.
SETLIST
- I Never Learn
- Sadness is a Blessing
- Just Like a Dream
- No Rest for the Wicked
- Jerome
- Dance, Dance, Dance
- Little Bit
- Sleeping Alone
- Silver Springs (Fleetwood Mac cover)
- Gunshot
- I Follow Rivers
- Never Gonna Love Again
- Youth Knows No Pain
- Get Some
ENCORE
- Heart of Steel
