Bleachers in Pittsburgh – June 5, 2024
On Wednesday night, Bleachers treated Pittsburgh to a great night of music at the Stage AE, as part of their “From the Studio to the Stage” tour in support of their fourth studio album. They were joined by Samia, whose melodic vocals prepared the crowd for the night ahead.
Samia
The 27-year old singer songwriter from New York City opened the show, joined by several band members. She opened the show with “Pool,” off her 2020 debut album The Baby, and the crowd instantly settled in to the indie-pop vibes. The majority of her set consisted of songs off the debut album – including some bigger hits like “Big Wheel.” The crowd enjoyed her set and took in her raw, emotional lyrics, and the cheers following each song grew louder as the crowd grew and settled in. She finished her set with, “Is There Something in the Movies?” a song that showcased Samia’s vocal range and emotional connection to the audience.
Bleachers
The lights dimmed and the band members took their spots on stage, before Jack Antonoff emerged to a raucous cheer and the opening notes to “I Am Right on Time,” began. A fit opening song, the energy and passion from the band bubbled as the song grew to a crescendo, smoothly transitioning into “Modern Girl,” another song off their new self-titled album. The song is a perfect representation of the frantic energy the band plays with, featuring two saxophonists battling out their jazz-like riffs.
Antonoff never sat still on stage, bouncing around while playing guitar or running around stage with the microphone – even jumping on top of the speaker setups on either side of the stage. His bandmembers matched his energy, with two backing drum kits that drove the heartbeat of their up-tempo songs, and two saxophonists becoming the center of attention whenever the song allowed. Their set featured a variety of old and new songs – most came from their self-titled album released only a few weeks ago – but still played several from their earlier albums. Some crowd favorites included, “How Dare You Want More,” “Goodmorning,” and “Chinatown” (which sadly did not feature a surprise appearance from Bruce Springsteen).
A cool moment came towards the end of the show, when Antonoff spoke about living in Pittsburgh for a short time, and played an unreleased demo he wrote while living in Lawrenceville. The crowd certainly enjoyed hearing his anecdotes about the time he spent in their city, and were lucky to hear a song not many had ever heard before. Their encore consisted of more crowd-favorites, including “I Wanna Get Better,” “Don’t Take the Money,” and “Stop Making This Hurt,” which featured an extended outro and some incredible improvisation skills from the saxophone players. The crowd loved every minute of the show, and easily would have stayed for another hour of music from Antonoff and his band.
