Lorde gave a stripped down performance in her New York City debut at the Roseland Ballroom. (Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images)
Her final show in the three-day stand is tonight (Mar. 12).
Lorde, 17, one of music’s hottest up-and-coming artists, made her New York City debut at the ballroom, making her one of the last acts in its 58-year history.
Lady Gaga, a native New Yorker, will close out the venue with seven shows, starting March 28 through April 7.
Lorde Makes NYC Debut at Roseland
(Click Photos to Enlarge!)
At its height in the 1980s, Roseland was a major disco scene, and almost every major music act, from Nirvana and Beyoncé to the Rolling Stones, played there.
Located on W. 52nd Street in the heart of the theater district, it can hold just over 3,000 fans for a concert, which makes it a fairly intimate venue.
But soaring New York City real estate prices and competition from other venues like Best Buy Theater, Hammerstein Ballroom, Terminal 5 and Beacon Theater, sealed its fate, according to Forbes magazine.
A 50-story, 450,000-square-foot building with ground-floor retail stores is being planned for the site, reflecting the Theater District’s rise as a signature address in Manhattan.
Lorde’s production was stripped down. It had the feel of a ’50s arthouse concert. It featured her, a keyboardist/guitarist and a drummer under one spotlight, which kept the show focus on the music.
It may not have been her best performance; she tweeted before opening night Monday (Mar. 10) that she was losing her voice and battling a cold. The New York Daily News gave her a so-so review.
Critic Jim Faber called her music “droning and monochromatic.”
“Her vocals become as benumbed as Lana Del Rey’s,” he added.
She sang all of the cuts from her debut album Pure Heroine, and a cover of the Replacements’ “Swingin’ Party” for a 12-song set.
Check out her performance below, photos from the Mar. 11 show above and let us know your thoughts. Be sure to follow TheImproper on Twitter for the latest music news.
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