Fresh from a storming Glastonbury performance, Brighton was treated to some Scandi-pop in what was Tove Lo’s sole UK headline date inbetween her current run of sporadic festival appearances. The Grammy nominee shot to fame with her ‘Habits (Stay High)’ song, which has amassed over 200 million hits on YouTube. Whilst her new album doesn’t have the pure pop sensibilities of the debut record, a greater focus has been placed on production, with a hazy decadence and sensual underbelly manifesting into what is a fascinating evolution.

The Swedish singer could have easily played a larger venue in the city, making the show feel extra special for those in attendance. “Zero fucks about it,” she sang on opening track ‘True Disaster’ in what could double up as a mantra for the songstress, with recent LP Lady Wood’s provocative cover draped round the venue. She’s never been one to bottle up her emotions in recordings and the same goes for her live shows, with the outline of female genitalia making up the stage design.

Her characteristically honest, complex and autobiographical lyrical content is raw and dives beyond mainstream pop music, with her brooding voice matching perfectly with the electronica the band produce. Although the set was made up equally between both records, Lady Wood’s tales of sex, drugs and heartbreak gained the biggest reactions, with the new songs more immersive and compelling than the predecessor. Another captivating aspect of her performances is her liberal attitude to clothing. Showing her chest has become a regular part of the Nordic star’s sets and she did exactly that here; met with a large intake of breath from the Monday evening audience.

However, whilst decadence and extreme forthrightness may well be what make her so distinctive, she still needs the compositions to back it up, and following opener ‘True Disaster’s’ throbbing synthetic soundscape ‘Lady Wood’ soon followed with its throbbing rhythmic core.

Attention then drifted away from the music as she lost herself in the sonic explorations, grabbing her crotch and gyrating from side to side in the haze of a mesmerising strobe light show. This may all be structured and planned down to each move, but it’s still spellbinding to watch, nonetheless. ‘Talking Body’ then got things back on track before ‘Cool Girl’ had her using the vocoder to beautiful effect. Her pop sensibilities soon came back to the forefront as she closed with ‘Habits (Stay High)’ to rapturous applause.

She will soon be supporting the likes of Justin Bieber this summer which will elevate her status even further and, if she can stick to her formula of writing promiscuous, catchy songs under the backdrop of candid lyrics and devastating electronica, then Tove Lo has the potential to become a global superstar on this showing.
Paul Hill

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