From lead singer in a lesbian pop band, to solo folk artist: what can't Katie Gavin do?
I was introduced to Katie Gavin as the lead singer for the band MUNA. She is a powerhouse vocalist and an energetic performer. When she announced solo music, I had no idea what to expect.
Gavin has played at Bowery before with MUNA, but to a very different crowd. She explained that a lot of the songs on album What A Relief were originally written for MUNA, but did not fit with the band's sound. This makes sense as connections can be heard between songs on What A Relief and MUNA's “Kind of Girl”. With this album and tour, Gavin has proven herself to be capable of drawing audiences in both as the lead singer of a flashy pop band and as a stripped-down solo artist. Bravo.
The audience was immediately captivated by Gavin from the instant she came out on stage. The stage had lit candles and incense while Gavin poured tea into strawberry mugs for her and Adjoa (backing vocalist, keys, and guitarist) from a matching strawberry kettle. From the tea to the general mood of the crowd, it was an intimate atmosphere.
The set opened with "Today," a shorter track that feels like an entry in Gavin's diary ending with the lyrics: "I'll find my way/ cuz I was given today”. The song is melancholic yet hopeful and grounds the audience in the immediate moment for the rest of the show. After the song ended, we could hear a birdsong as the introduction for "Sparrow." People in the crowd softly sang along, but mostly watched and swayed. No one was left untouched by the profundity of her words. For her third song, "As Good As It Gets“, a track that is originally a duet with Gavin and Mitski, Gavin brought out opener and friend Liam Benzvi.
Gavin joked during Benzvi's opening set that "You should dance and take advantage of it. You're [the audience] not gonna have a lot of dancing in the rest of the set." She ended up being proven wrong by the entire room, especially by the group I was standing with. They were a testament to the type of people Gavin attracts– the best kind.
"Casual Drug Use" is one of the more upbeat songs on the album despite its subject matter. Once the chorus hit, this group and I were singing and dancing our hearts out to the lyrics: "It's a little unnerving how fast I'll fall back in / To fixing my issues with casual drug use”. The words are serious but Gavin's musicality within the track allow for a sense of levity and space for self-reflection on potentially harmful behaviors. It was sweet to see that the dancing typically found at a MUNA show carried over to this tour. The amount of joy in the audience was infectious.
Gavin brought out a fiddle for "Inconsolable”, an instrument she relearned how to play for the tour. She seemed very comfortable playing and during these solos she moved around the stage and danced. The audience was so loud singing the words to this track. The lyrics clearly impacted listeners, myself included. Dancing and singing to words about generational trauma and not knowing how to be cared for was a cathartic and healing experience for all. There is a special talent in being able to make art about traumatic emotions and create space for these feelings to be released in community. At the end of the song a fan gave Gavin a crocheted baby lizard on a carabiner in reference to the line: "But I've seen baby lizards running in the river when they open their eyes / Even though no one taught them how or why." I also saw fans with handmade baby lizard shirts.
She played "sanitized" on piano, introing it by explaining that this song was one of the weirder ones on the album. This track is one of my favorites due to its unique nature.
I don't think there was a single dry eye in the ballroom after Gavin started playing "Sweet Abby Girl," a song about her late dog. I had chills and teared up along with most of the audience around me. Gavin's voice is soulful and lilting and sonically conveys emotions that are indescribable with words. The audience was incredibly respectful and quiet, leaving room to hear Gavin fully. Following the song, Gavin explained that What A Relief is an album "meant for journalling," a sentiment I wholeheartedly agree with. She laughed and shared that a fan once said "I listen to MUNA because no matter how bad of a day I'm having, Katie Gavin is having a worse one," and explained that the next song was "very fitting of everything I just said" and then played "I Want It All”.
The next track was unreleased, titled "She Gives Me Feelings”, which was well-loved by the crowd. Gavin directly shouted out the group I had been dancing with, laughing "the front row is shaking ass!"
Gavin had us help her with backing vocals on "The Baton“. This track is an intimate exploration of the mother/daughter relationship and what is passed down spanning generations. If eyes were damp during "Sweet Abby Girl”, tears were streaming during "The Baton”. I was raised on the Indigo Girls and many songs on the album remind me of them but this one especially. The song is a heartfelt call to what it means to be part of this metaphorical baton passed down from mother to daughter and the constant unwavering passage of time.
Before "Keep Walking" Gavin shared that "this one is about...recognizing that you do have a lot of love for somebody in your heart and want them to achieve wellbeing and find their god or whatever, but realizing you can't interact with them on the godly material plane. The person this is about...we've had resolution in my dreams on the astral plane but if I see them in person it's on sight." Gavin giggles and starts to play.
What a Relief is an album for rainy days, for beaches on the south of France in the sun, and most of all for feeling. "Sketches" is a shorter song with a sad and cozy feeling. Gavin closed the set with "Aftertaste”, the single of the album. On its release I listened to it on replay on a beach in the South of France (hence the analogy) and it fit perfectly. The joy in the room was palpable as everyone sang along.
Fans shared that Gavin has had deep impacts on their lives. Tori Alexander shared that Katie was the femme queer role model she had been missing and that her "music has helped shape my inner voice into a more gentle one." Sam Schucker shared that "the intimate setting of the show was so perfect."
