It’s hard to sell out the Xcel Energy Center. ESPECIALLY on a Tuesday. However this was seemingly an effortless feat for Billie Eilish last night as her and Duckwrth took on one of Minnesota’s largest concert venues for an outstanding performance. As the lights dimmed and the crowd roared just before set time, Billie’s brother Finneas and fellow bandmate Andy took the stage amidst a flurry of flashing camera lights. Then, out of nowhere, Billie jumps up from a hidden platform underneath the center of the stage. A moment many will remember as an AWESOME start to what would become a great hour and a half set.
After the first few songs, Billie introduced herself and made a few rules clear: be nice (because it’s a lot easier than being mean), stay safe, and have fun. These words set the vibe for a seamless night of eclectic music, impressive light displays and musicality that only a pop star with a sound as unique as hers can deliver. For much of the set, Billie weaved between tracks with smoothness you would expect from a DJ set – from one song to another without skipping a beat. From the slower and emotionally somber songs like Happier Than Ever to the fun dance tunes like bad guy, the set felt like a tribute to her rise to fame dating back to the 2017 EP dont smile at me.
The stage setup itself was an impressive display – Finneas and drummer Andy were positioned near the back on elevated surfaces. In between them laid an LED panel big enough for Billie to walk around on and bright enough to display graphics die hard fans recognized from music videos. While performing her song NDA (released last summer), the massive LED stage went dark before turning into a deserted back country road. Images of speeding cars were plastered along the back of the stage, as if we were living in the music video itself. There’s a lot about Billie Eilish that attracts fans – her music (obviously), fashion sense, overall demeanor and ability to be relatable – but the one binding agent of music that we all hunger for is to feel as if we are a part of something bigger than ourselves. To let our emotions out. To have a cry or a scream and to not feel alone in that experience. We all took home a piece of that feeling last night.
The Happier Than Ever continues tonight in Omaha, NE with over 50 dates still remaining around the world from the UK to Australia. Duckwrth, Billie’s opening act, got the crowd going early on in the night with an energetic performance that oozed with personality. Armed with a mix of hip-hop, Rnb and dance tunes, he was the perfect mix of style and approoachable energy to prepare the sold out Xcel Energy Center for Billie Eilish. From our staff out at the show – it was a 10/10.
Check out other photos from the night below. These are courtesy of Joe Lemke Photography.
