Poppy Begins “Never Find My Place” Tour in Sacramento’s Ace of Spades
On the heels of her acclaimed recent full length Flux, multidisciplinary artist Poppy has announced an expansive world tour kicking off March 8 in Sacramento. The outing will hit every corner of the country over the following months, followed by a run of festival appearances in the Summer (including Roskilde, Welcome to Rockville, When We Were Young, and more), before concluding the year with a full European run in the Fall. Flux was produced by Justin Meldal-Johnsen (M83, Deafheaven, St. Vincent), who had Poppy and her band record live to tape, resulting in an organic feel that is especially suited to live performance. The Never Find My Place Tour marks Poppy’s first proper run since the I Disagree tour was cut short in early 2020 after a hugely successful US leg during which she performed a slew of sold out shows to the biggest crowds of her career.
Gaining viral fame from her performance videos on YouTube, Poppy portrayed an android entity that has remained prevalent in her character as a performer, throughout her music career. Throughout the past few years, though her direction in her music career showed a rumor of transition in the second half of the artist’s second full length album, Am I A Girl, with nu-metal influences; it wasn’t until the release of her third album in 2019, I Disagree, that we were shown a new side of Poppy; not just in her sound, but in her overall personality and direction as an artist. Read our full album review to hear our thoughts on the new chapter. Since then, Poppy has continued to shift the boundaries of genre and music as we know it. She has won a Grammy in “Best Metal Performance” last year, and continuously released a string of hits, including her next full-length project, Flux. While this album bends more toward the sound of the 80’s punk scene, Poppy’s post-genre nature shows most evidently in her live performances as all her sounds marry together as one, distinct sound; all highlighting her contrastingly sweet vocals and blood-curdling screams.
Flux is another ambitious leap for the ever-evolving musician, putting a renewed focus on a stream-lined songwriting approach that foregrounds her indelible vocal melodies atop a kaleidoscopic mosaic of overdriven guitars. The album was preceded by self-directed videos for “So Mean” and “Flux” (which featured a pastel dream world constructed by Australian visual/sculpture artist Pip & Pop), and a video by accomplished stop motion animator/director Chris Ullens (Rex Orange County, Lee Ann Womack) for “Her.” Each visual deepens the context of the album, revealing a world brimming with blisteringly sunny vocal melodies and saturated sonics.
We joined with the adoring fans, dressed in their best black wear, dark makeup, and platform boots on the opening night of Poppy’s “Never Find My Place” Tour, in Sacramento California’s Ace of Spades. Each crowd member welcomed one another with open arms and shared their uniqueness as one. As Poppy joined the stage, excitement swelled through our bones at her poise and practiced movement.
Playing a shifting lineup of tracks both from her I Disagree era, and from the freshly released Flux, each contrasting sound seemingly blended in perfect harmony with one another. Though the styles of her sound continuously shifted and transitioned, each track showcased a full and talented band dressed in uniform, with Poppy shining center stage. Candy-sweet vocals quickly shifted into heavy screams that blazed like a fire and sent chills through the crowd who listened intently to every word. Poppy’s performance overall defied any context of genre as cool electric guitar contrasted sweet vocal tones, and the heavy metal drums pounding in our ears complimented her voice as well, just as different and unique as it was.
Poppy herself was few of words, throughout her set. While she encouraged her audience to sing along and dance, her final words before leaving the stage were simply, “Thank you Sacramento. I love you.”
Poppy will be continuing her round of tour dates throughout the rest of the year. Snag your tickets for this unique experience while you have the chance!
Listen to Flux, available now on all streaming platforms:
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