Phoenix @ The Anthem [DC] - 9/16/2022
Phoenix at The Anthem in DC (Photo ©2022 Mauricio Castro)
Phoenix not only has a thing for earworms, but also eye-catching visuals. For their tour supporting 2017’s Ti Amo, the French band performed underneath a massive mirror tilted towards the crowd while standing atop a video screen that reflected outwards. During the pandemic, they took their aesthetic infatuations to the next level by recording Alpha Zulu, their first since Ti Amo, in an empty Louvre museum wing during the pandemic, even receiving ID badges to walk the complex without issue. And during their stop at The Anthem, the band performed in front of a stage-enveloping LED screen that portrayed a picture frame (maybe even one you would see at the Louvre) containing backdrops of extravagant paintings (yes, maybe like ones that you would see at the Louvre) of golden hour sunsets, castle courtyards at twilight, extravagantly palatial rooms, and a lot of striking silhouettes against bold streaks of red and blue.
Up to now, the results shared from Alpha Zulu have ranged from the title track’s annoyingly catchy “Whoo ha, singing hallelujah!” to the Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix-reminiscent “Tonight” with Vampire Weekend’s Ezra Koenig. During the show, the band brought out another new track to preview the album: the unreleased, slow-burning “Winter Solstice.” Of course, they rolled out the hits too: they kicked off the set with “Lisztomania,” “Entertainment,” and “Lasso,” whipping fans up in a frenzy in no time with a reminder of how inescapable their music was just a decade ago. And through it all, the machine-like efficiency and power of Thomas Hedlund, their long-time touring drummer and tour de force, propelled the rest of the band in turn. Singer Thomas Mars careened around the venue in his own energetic, yet understated way: the occasional whip of the long microphone cable on stage, and a jaunt through and even atop the crowd, looking calm and collected the whole way, as if his natural habitat is up there, above the hands of their adoring fans. It’s easy to feel nostalgic about the music of the blogosphere era, and Phoenix do deliver in that regard, but they still continue to amaze with their boundless energy and new songs that will complement the rest of their excellent setlist and excellent visuals in the years to come.
