Fans of Glass Animals have followed them through all sorts of venues in Kansas City. They’ve played hot spots like the Riot Room and Czar Bar. But on Saturday night, they followed the band to outer space.
When they brought their “Tour of Earth” to Azura Amphitheater, fans were ready to get celestial. They donned sunglasses shaped like alien eyes, wore alien necklaces and bracelets, and someone even brought an inflatable cow as though they were ready for an alien abduction. Glass Animals fans are just so wacky, and we love it.
They were rewarded for their level of enthusiasm with an outstanding show. I mean, there’s a reason the band has had such a strong trajectory to the point that they’ve played Azura now twice in a row. Frontman Dave Bayley’s energy is through the roof, an incredible performer who gets the crowd dancing from the get-go. He brought everyone to a cosmic level of euphoria, even at one point taking flight when a platform elevated him to the stars.
Though most of the setlist was from the recently released I Love You So F***ing Much, the band did dive into their old favorites. A highlight of the night came when Bayley darted to the center of the crowd to perform “Gooey.” No, this was not the pit at the front of the stage, but actually WAY in the middle, like behind the middle of the venue, way back in the cheap seats. The joy this brought to the fans was infectious. “We’ve got aliens, glow sticks, the gentle scent of marijuana,” Bayley joked before noting “There’s fucking good vibes everywhere.”
What Glass Animals achieves is nothing short of amazing. This band has a regular setup– guitar, bass, keys, drums… yet they still felt and sounded unworldly. They hit it right on the nose with the space theme, and the light show alone was entertaining with a space ship perched right in the middle of the stage and lasers projecting into the audience throughout the night. It was definitely, as Bayley noted, nonstop “fucking good vibes everywhere” throughout the night.
They were joined on this tour by Blondshell’s droney teen angst (their first time in the region) and the impeccably beautiful Eyedress (who were a perfect setup for those “fucking good vibes”).
Photos from the night below.