NOTE: All photos are copyright of Howard Shiau Photography 2025
Fans have been grooving to the synth-pop tunes of Scottish band Chvrches for the last decade. Two years after their last studio album, lead singer Lauren Mayberry is taking a turn on the solo circuit. She’s been working on her first solo album, releasing the first single “Are You Awake” the beginning of this month. At first listen, the piano ballad is a far cry from the dance pop of Chvrches but we’ll have to see once we get a chance to hear the full record. On September 20, 2023, only a week into her solo tour, she stopped by the Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto on the tenth anniversary to the day of the release of Chvrches hit debut album “The Bones of What You Believe”.
Opening for Mayberry was LA-based singer/songwriter ggwendolyn. Before the show, I had asked a fellow concert-goer (who had been following Mayberry’s tour from stop to stop) to tell me a little about ggwendolyn and he mentioned that she has a lovely voice and bounces all around the stage. On this evening, it turns out he was only right on the first. Before ggwendolyn even started, she explained that she would be sitting on a stool for the set because she’d been ignoring a concussion that she suffered several days ago and it had gotten bad enough to really make her sick so she was going to take it easy. That was perfect because it made you listen to her music that much more closely. She is an excellent songwriter, belying her youth, and her debut EP “Nancy & the Crooked Cowboy” was released in June! Between her music and singing, self-deprecating humor (apologizing to any kids for the topic of “Crooked Cowboy”), and the wonderful drummer (sorry but I didn’t catch her name), it was an amazing start to the show. Check out her music if you can!
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For the main event, I still wasn’t sure what to expect and Lauren Mayberry started in the dark standing on a platform on the stage (which couldn’t have been more than two feet high). She kicked off her set with “Bird”, a techno track that didn’t stray too far from her Chvrches music. Mayberry’s stage presence has developed over the years and she seems more confident, exuding an allure that is less sexual but rather fierce. I needn’t have worried that the slow melancholy “Are You Awake” would be the musical theme for the whole record. The set seemed to encompass all different genres from synth-pop to ballad to even punk! At previous shows, she had been performing two covers including Madonna’s “Like a Prayer”. On this night, instead of a second cover, she did an acoustic version of “Lungs” to celebrate the tenth anniversary of “The Bones of What You Believe”.
Highlights were “Are You Awake” with Mayberry solo on keyboards, “Lungs” with Lauren kneeling in front of the lyric sheet (because it’s been eight years since she last performed this song ), and the finale “Sorry, Etc” (a surprisingly punk song and the words were bejeweled onto Mayberry’s face). Catch her on the brief tour if you can. I’m very much looking forward to hearing the full album soon!
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