Last night (September 9), Tove Lo played a tiny gig for NME at London’s Shacklewell Arms as part of our Girls To The Front series, championing women and non-binary artists and creating a safe space for fans to enjoy music.
Ahead of the release of her new album ‘Sunshine Kitty’, the show saw the singer give live debuts to brand new songs from the album, as well as a glimpse at unreleased material. Team that with a selection of tracks from her unbeatable arsenal of pop bangers and it was a night to behold – a proper pinch-me moment watching a huge star in the not-at-all-glamorous surroundings of NME’s favourite Dalston boozer.
If you weren’t one of the lucky few hundred who got tickets, here’s what went down… And if you’re kicking yourself for not getting tickets, here’s how to catch Charli XCX’s favourite all-girl band Nasty Cherry at the next one.
We would mention that Dave Grohl came and played Club NME last month too, but frankly, that would just be showing off.
1Here we go…
Tove Lo played a tiny show at the Shacklewell Arms in east London last night.
2Stans welcome
The sold out gig, part of NME’s Girls To The Front series, was the smallest the singer has played in London for aeons.
3Here comes the sun
The show came just a few weeks before the release of her hotly-anticipated new album ‘Sunshine Kitty’.
4Up close and personal
Opening the show, Tove adapted to the vibe of the small, sweaty Shacklewell, telling the crowd “I’m gonna play some songs in a punk style for you”.
5Boy bye
Beginning with ‘Glad He’s Gone’ from the new album, the crowd yelled back every word at the Swedish star.
6“This song’s about my first crush on a girl”
Before playing ‘Bad As The Boys’, Tove revealed that she’d been trawling through journals she kept since the age of nine, documenting “different romances and heartbreaks”, and that they significantly impacted the tone of ‘Sunshine Kitty’.
7Strike a pose
Hearing new material as well as old classics, the crowd were in the palm of Tove’s hand for the whole show.
8Tres bon
“Let’s get French!” the singer exclaimed ahead of playing recent single ‘Jacques’, pointing out Jax Jones, her collaborator for the song, who was in the room watching the set.
9Kylie? Who needs her!
Tove went on to give a live debut to her recent Kylie Minogue collaboration ‘Really Don’t Like U’ (sans Kylie). She expressed her nerves at playing the song live for the first time, but the pulsing sadbanger was an undeniable highlight of the set.
10Let’s slow things down
“I want to play you the ballad from the album,” she said before playing another track from ‘Sunshine Kitty’ – “it’s straight up about jealousy”.
11Down the front
The crowd were uproarious in their appreciation of previews of Tove’s new songs – and went absolutely crazy to the old bangers.
12One last dance
Ending on the huge ‘Habits (Stay High)’, the room erupted in one last euphoric dance.
13On the decks
Before and after the show, DJ Lisa Wright was on hand to spin bangers by Lorde, Billie Eilish, Charli XCX and many more.