Bristol Trinity Centre – Friday 4th March 2022
This tour in support of one of the best pop albums of 2021 has been postponed twice, and Self Esteem comes flying out the gate as though in fear of it being cancelled a third time, with the driving rhythm of Mike Park (drums) and Sophie Galpin (bass, keys) on “I’m Fine” setting the tone for an evening of constant motion and pure energy. There’s barely a moment to pause and catch a breath through the first half of the set as sophomore album highlights “Fucking Wizadry” and title track “Prioritise Pleasure” give way to older tracks “Girl Crush”, “Favourite Problem” and “(hobbies)”, and the sold-out Bristol Trinity crowd is here for it, matching the Rotherham singer’s (and her back-up singers/dancers’) spirit and passion beat for beat.
The aforementioned Favourite Problem serves as a brief change in pace, a moment of reflection before launching into a second act more second-album heavy, and the fans are in full voice, singing, whooping and even barking along at every lyric.
A brief false start at the intro to How Can I Help You might lead you to think Self Esteem is almost too excited, but as the stage explodes in red light, the rest of the performance is flawless, despite being “fucking knackered” in her words and wishing to stand still with an acoustic guitar (foreshadowing a later stripped down performance of “Just Kids”), but a good minute of unabashed cheering from the audience must have rejuvenated the singer as new single “You Forever” reveals itself to be a future set stalwart, a fist-pumping anthem that will definitely find a place in Self Esteem’s many festival performances later this year.
“I Do This All the Time” brings the energy back up, the positive message and Baz Luhrmann Sunscreen Song vibes serving as a perfect pre-encore closer, But it’s the anthemic “The Best” that ends the night proper, and rightly so as performer and crowd join together in celebration of a hell of an evening’s show.
Self Esteem’s work is routinely associated with female empowerment, and the themes of sexuality, violence against women and mental health might put some off (though it absolutely shouldn’t, the messages here are important), but Self Esteem’s connection with her audience is undeniable, whether inspiring them to raucous chorus or casting utter silence through the room through beautiful performances of “Just Kids” and encore track “Still Reigning”. With cathartic performances like this, anyone can join the celebration. A must-see act for any pop music lover.
Ryan Dawson
Craig J Simmonds Media
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