Feist’s performance was full of surprises all the way through.

The show started as an image was projected on the sheet behind the stage. At first unclear, it became noticeable as Feist walked from backstage holding a phone and videoing her ascent upon the waiting crowd. She then stood in a shimmering dress alone with her acoustic guitar on a small stage right next to the audience, no barriers or corners separating them. Not the normal setting one could come to expect from an international platinum record artist. 

The performance felt close and intimate in a way that was unexpected but wonderful. I even feel a little out of place commenting on it because it came across from my point of view as a personal experience that was nearly sacred. 

The opening song was “The Bad in Each Other” from her 2011 album “Metals.” Throughout many of her songs in the first act of the show, she would often pause, tell a story, or chat with audience members before picking right back up with the song and continuing along. This casualness largely contributed to the feeling of intimacy. 

After completing her first three songs, she handed the phone that had been streaming to the backdrop to a crowd member to walk around with it and interact with the audience via attendees sharing photos of moments that encapsulate the feeling of stillness. People shared photos of flowers, sunsets, the ocean and others images that captured tranquility. This method of visuals was simple, the catalyst was a phone but the effect it had on the audience helped to make quite the impact. It came across rather like an experimental film, a nonlinear presentation that involved the crowd with the performance they were witnessing.

This show was part of the last edition of Feist’s “Multitudes” tour, a celebratory tour for her most recent album. According to Interscope Records, this show is the first of its kind with 360-degree immersive sound to be involved in the performance. The idea for this rendition of the show came about during its first run in 2021 and 2022 and was a collaborative effort between Feist and others including Rob Sinclair, as a way to involve the audience in performing in a new and unique way. From the perspective of an audience member, I could see this in effect for reasons stated before and others.  

I’ve never experienced a show quite like it. 

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