Dawn Richard’s Uplifting Electro Revival Show

Continuing in Hanif Abdurraqib’s excellent spring series, Dawn Richard brought her stunning “Electro Revival” show to the Brooklyn Academy of Music. The presentation built upon her highly-regarded 2021 record Second Line, celebrating New Orleans, her home, and highlights her blend of pop, soul, bounce, and house music (with some covers mixed in). Richard initially set out to tour in late 2021, but the pandemic pushed the tour into the summer of 2022 alongside Purity Ring. 

Richard was joyful and dazzling through a set that featured a glowing cube, a rhinestone microphone, and two backup dancers. Supported by two live musicians, she created and grooved to the pulsating Second Line rhythms of “Nostalgia”, “Bussifame”, and “Boomerang” in the early part of her set. But after an intermission, a shift occurred, and Richard felt free as she excerpted lyrics from songs like the Cranberries’ “Zombie” and Goo Goo Dolls’ “Iris” alongside her songs “300” and “Perfect Storm” (respectively). 

Richard’s set wasn’t flawless. There were some auditory blemishes, like when she encouraged the audience to sing, their voices didn’t carry down to her, but she took it in stride and blamed the masks. Richard’s Electro Revival is an infectious, funky show that lifted people from their seats and got them moving their feet.

TOUR DATES

Apr 29 – New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 2022, New Orleans, LA
Jun 25 – Webster Hall, New York, NY
Jun 26 – Brooklyn Steel, Brooklyn, NY
Jun 27 – Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA
Jun 29-30 – 9:30 Club, Washington, DC
Jul 2 – The Fillmore Charlotte, Charlotte, NC
Jul 3 – The Orange Peel, Asheville, NC
Jul 5 – Marathon Music Works, Nashville, TN
Jul 6 – Buckhead Theatre, Atlanta, GA
Jul 15 – Pitchfork Music Festival 2022, Chicago, IL
Aug 27-28 – This Ain’t No Picnic 2022, Pasadena, CA