Brett Callwood
Kristiane gets on the Lorde Ship: L.A. alt-pop star Kristiane told us about her Lorde experience.
Kristiane: I distinctly remember my first concert; the summer air stuck to my skin, my grandmother calling a taxi, and pinching myself as we drove to the Staples Center. We drank soda in the backseat (against my mom’s wishes), and my grandmother pointed out historic buildings downtown. My sister and I hung onto her every word, as we watched day descend into night, the LA heat dissipating into a forgiving breeze. We were 6 years old, in disbelief that we would be singing along to Hilary Duff’s Metamorphosis album on a school night.
Over a decade later, my twin sister, best friend and I embarked on a similar journey to the infamous Staples Center. We were 19, entrenched in post-high school confusion and the transition into early adulthood. The world seemed to expand overnight, and life gleamed with possibility, as we evaded our inevitable catapult into the real world. Lorde’s Melodrama encapsulated these feelings in such a tangible way, it was as if she was listening to our late night conversations in our tiny apartment on the Westside. Somehow, she too was “19 and on fire”, and we weren’t alone in the enormity and spectrum of our emotions. We jumped on the opportunity to see these songs that captured our hearts live.
Sprite and candy in the backseat became plastic water bottles filled with warm vodka and an Uber ride to Downtown. My best friend did my makeup in the car, in between swigs of liquid courage. We got to the venue, and were immediately entranced into Lorde’s world. Thousands of teenagers alike sang the words in roaring unity, somehow all one immeasurable mass of pure emotion. Swirls of purple and blue hues lit the stage, as Lorde danced with fervor. When she walked off stage, the three of us held hands in a quiet understanding that we had experienced something we would never forget.
It’s funny to think about now, these formative live music performances, both albums about the precipice of change and feelings larger than yourself, in the same venue, years apart. I had no aptitude for the depth of my emotions as a six year old, but somehow I was drawn into the world of live music and escaping yourself for the night. At 19, I felt fleeting but undeniable hope, encompassed in another world with my two best friends. Now, at 23, I’m preparing to play my own shows, with songs written about these feelings that have seemed to follow me my whole life. Live music is a beautiful, incomparable gift.
Kristiane gets on the Lorde Ship: Kristiane’s new single “State Lines” is out now.
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