Beabadoobee Leaves It All on the Stage at the Final Beatopia Tour Show
After gracing Asia, Europe and the United Kingdom with her presence, Beabadoobee rounded out her Beatopia Tour at her final destination: Roadrunner in Boston, MA. Although this was the last show of the tour, it was the first time Boston fans heard Beatopia songs live. Thirty minutes before the doors even opened, the line stretched three blocks, full of eager, fashionable fans. The venue filled quickly and seemed almost full by the time the lights dimmed for opening act Lowertown.
Vocalist Olive Osby was the first member of Lowertown to enter the stage to sing their alternative track “It’s It’s It’s” on her own. Towards the end of the song, the rest of the band confidently took their places on stage. Since most of their top streamed songs don’t seem to have a strong punk influence, you wouldn’t expect the group to be ripping some impressive electric guitar and jumping all over the stage like they did for the entirety of their set. Osby let out some guttural screams that evidently amped up the crowd’s energy. She also made her second successful attempt ever at crowd surfing. The band unfortunately met an abrupt ending when they ran out of time performing “Best Person You Know.”
“Beatopia Cultsong” guided Bea Kristi and her band onstage as they entered discreetly in the dark. The band appeared overjoyed by the enthusiasm of the crowd. Kristi donned a black tank with a silver Diesel logo, red and black plaid skirt, black blazer, and black leather boots.
Kristi tends to wow crowds every night with her impressive sense of style. It is evident that she influenced the Boston crowd’s fashion, as they sported staple pieces in Kristi’s current wardrobe such as graphic baby tees, pleated skirts, black knee-high boots, blazers, and unique jackets. Kristi’s merch for the show also fit perfectly within her fashion sense, which is refreshing to see with the questionable merch many artists have recently released. One shirt displayed the cover of the Beatopia, the perfect visual for a tee.
The same album cover towers behind the band on stage when the lights come on. Kristi began with a standout on Beatopia, “10:36.” The performance sounded almost identical to the studio version, but was further enhanced by the impressive talent of the band with remarkable guitar and drum elements. Kristi’s onstage confidence appeared to have significantly developed since the last time she played in Boston at the Royale.
“Care” picked up high interaction from the crowd, as fans released all of the air in their lungs to scream “CARE” back to her during the chorus. Drummer Luca Caruso’s outstanding drumming skills are vital to maintaining the liveliness in the room. “Yoshimi, Forest, Magdalene” was a display of her radiating presence on stage, kneeling and inviting everyone to aggressively echo the lyrics during the forceful ending.
Kristi then returned to Beatopia songs, bombarded with screeches and cell phone cameras when the first few guitar plucks of “Perfect Pair,” filled the room. A few of her Beatopia songs gathered adoration on Tik Tok, explaining the expansion of her audience since her last show in Boston. “Sunny Day” followed, putting the crowd in a fun, bubbly mood as people swayed side to side to the playful beat.
“Sorry” was a standout live performance track for Kristi and the band. Her band members sat towards the back of the stage on the drum platform while Kristi performed the beginning with just her impassioned vocals and guitar. With nonchalant body language, the band re-entered for the epic instrumental breakdown after the chorus. Kristi’s vocals were outstanding and guitarist Jacob Bugden absolutely shredded.
“She Plays Bass” was bassist Elliana Sewell’s moment to shine, and she did just that playing with her back against Kristi’s. “See You Soon” followed with the first cell phone flashlight appearance of the night, pulling a little harder at the heartstrings on the last night of the tour. Her sincere vocals felt like an emotional goodbye to her Boston fans. Bugden contributed the same fuzzy response vocals alongside Kristi that are found in the studio version of “Don’t Get The Deal,” as well as some powerful vocals in the punk version of “Back To Mars.”
After hearing “Talk” live for the first time, I can confidently say it matched the incredible, electric energy of “Cologne” that followed immediately after on the setlist. Both songs allowed Kristi to go all in, kneeling and singing with a clear passion. The band’s instrumentals were astonishing for these two tracks, presumably going all out as the setlist reached an end.
Before performing the beautiful, emotional track that is “Ripples,” Krisi delivered a powerful speech: “I want to remind all the women out there…that you are in fact badass. And if I can be that person that makes you remember that, then let me be that person.” Outside of the audience’s timid singing, the performance of the song proved to be a special, intimate moment. Kristi's vocals with acoustic guitar from herself and Bugden create a dazzling dynamic that has everyone’s eyes glued to them.
Ending with “Fairy Song,” Kristi hilariously demanded, “If you don’t go crazy, I’m gonna fuck myself!” Kristi and the band gave everything they had for the last song of the tour. They all disperse in fits of musical rage during the distorted instrumental section, using every last bit of energy they have. At the very end of the song, Kristi let out a lengthened scream full of every emotion she faced on this lengthy tour. Immediately hurdling off the stage as the song ends, Kristi traveled along the barricade to show appreciation to her fans one last time. As soon as she got back on stage, Kristi and the band immediately tossed all of the red panda and Squishmallow plushies received throughout the tour to the fans as a token of gratitude. With one final wave, Kristi leaves the Roadrunner stage, and we can only hope that she’ll be back soon.