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A Sunday night show always can tread a fine line; it could either lull you to sleep after a weekend full of activity, or it can cap off your weekend in grand fashion. In the case of Lucy Dacus’ Riverside Theater show on Sunday night, it was very much the latter, with a good crowd and just enough bite in the set to avoid any eyelids from getting heavy.
Openers Jay Som set the tone for the evening, with a charming set to a crowd that was still building. The open seats, though, were mainly because a good portion of the crowd were in a merchandise line that stretched from the theater lobby into the performance hall, and wrapped all the way down around the seats to the general admission pit near the stage. If you see a lot of people wearing t-shirts that read “my boyfriend, Lucy Dacus” over the next few days, you shouldn’t be surprised.
Meanwhile, Jay Som calmly delivered tracks primarily from 2019’s “Anak Ko,” as well as their new collaboration with Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat World, “Float.” Later in the evening, Dacus would tell the crowd that the band’s next record would be something special, and Milwaukee was treated to a preview of the album, with several unreleased songs ahead of the release of “Belong” this October.
When the lights dropped for Dacus and her band to take the stage, the Riverside likely reached its highest decibel level of the evening, with a wave of shrieks from the crowd. Led onstage by stagehands with flashlights, the band would tear the covers off of their instruments, and jump right into “Hot & Heavy” to start the night. At one point, a large sheet over the backdrop of the set would drop to reveal a wall of picture frames that would be populated with LED screen images throughout the night. Dacus would drift throughout the Riverside stage at will, sporadically playing off of her bandmates’ energy when the song called for it.
Throughout the nearly 90-minute set on Sunday, Dacus was able to captivate the crowd with whatever she did, and that meant they could get loud (well, a low roar) when she needed them to, but also be near-silent for her more somber songs. “Ankles,” the lead single from this year’s “Forever Is A Feeling” played well, and just two songs later, you could hear a pin drop during “Limerance,” a song about a looming breakup. While Sunday night’s show was never going to have a raucous crowd based on the nature of Dacus’ material, they hung on every word, every note, and were respectful of everything happening on stage.
When she talked with the crowd, she seemed to reciprocate the appreciation that the crowd had shown her. “We weren’t supposed to come here, but I said ‘don’t skip Milwaukee.’” she noted at one point. Dacus would also recount stories of playing a solo show on a couch with two herniated discs, as well as opening for The National at the Riverside, and feeling like she’d finally made it as an artist while watching that headlining set, not thinking that she could ever headline the venue. She exuded warmth with her presence, and there was a sense of connection throughout the night that is hard to come by.
Not only did the Milwaukee crowd get to celebrate Dacus’ catalogue on Sunday night, but they would also have three couples from the audience to celebrate as well. Recently on social media, the singer/songwriter asked if anyone wanted to get married at her shows, offering a form for people to sign up at each stop of the tour. As a licensed officiant in the United States, she could do that sort of thing, and she would at the end of “Best Guess,” with the three happy couples being cheered on by the Riverside. It was a sweet moment, and while a rather quick ceremony, one of the most memorable ways to tie the knot.
Later on in the night, Dacus and her band would create even more intimacy, circling around on a couch brought to the center of the stage for a requested acoustic version of “More Than Friends” followed by “Fools’ Gold.” She would also do a stripped down version of “Bullseye” featuring Hozier, with a member from her crew filling in on the featured verse. Once again, the crowd were more than supportive of the moment, cheering on every line of the duet.
With the tempo back up and the couch offstage, Dacus and the band would get just a bit looser for the end of the set. Things culminated in “Most Wanted Man,” with pictures of fans populating the picture frames on the back of the stage, as well as the title track to “Forever Is a Feeling” to close out the main portion of the night. Dacus would make her exit through the same door that she came in, center stage, and without much fanfare. They would be back within about a minute.
“It’s just customary. You leave, then you come back” she joked as they walked back onstage for her encore. Surely, the night couldn’t have passed without some reference to having one of the biggest albums of the past two years with Boygenius, and that came with a performance of “True Blue” that had the crowd joining on every note. There was an especially loud contribution from the crowd on a line about moving to Chicago, and when she asked who came up from the Windy City for the show, a large portion of the crowd threw up their hands. It felt like an especially loyal set of fans on Sunday, so the 90-minute drive for the majority of the crowd didn't seem too far fetched.
Things would close out with “Night Shift,” and the band would run around on stage at their most playful to cap off the night. Dacus was the last one off of the stage, thanking the crowd as she left. It was a heartfelt farewell, and before the song, she addressed that she didn’t know when they’d be back in Milwaukee. Based on the warm response and her fondness for the Riverside, though, it feels inevitable that she’ll make it a point to not skip the city once again in the future.
