An elephant is in the room at ACL Moody Theater. The grandiose march of Atlanta's biggest indie sensation brought life to an Austin audience tenaciously waiting for the star’s presence.
ANON KVRX PHOTOGRAPHER
Everyone knows who Faye Webster is in the nearly full arena. Her face covers rolling stone magazines, at least the digital ones, her songs score thousands of TikToks, and her bust is brought in and blown up before the instruments are brought to the arena.
Cautiously fans who have been following her for years might wonder how the fame and increased attention would change the disposition of the idiosyncratic artist.
Her latest album underdressed at the symphony, quiets those intrusive thoughts. The fifth studio album from Faye doubles down on the eccentric and nods to a somewhat self-deprecating matter-of-factness of life that is applauded.
Read our review btw!
Photo by Rachel Green
What's often a catch-all phrase, Faye Webster does pay homage to her “inner child” with songs like lego-ring accompanied by a game released alongside it. With lyrics circulating around purchasing useless knick-knacks on eBay and her disconnect with mainstream expectations, Faye goes into her newfound fame with the same amount of transparency she’s always had.
Now let's circle back to the elephant in the room. It’s actually not that Faye Webster is a rapidly growing star. She was the last time she visited the Texas capital and sold out Stubbs. It’s not the success of her new album, the singles alluded to that long before its official release on the first of this Month.
Faye Webster has never shied away from standing with her political beliefs, both with local issues and with other humanitarian crises.
Back in December of 2023, she performed alongside artists like Clairo, Omar Apollo, and 6lack in a Gaza & Sudan Benefit Concert In Newark.
Within a week of being announced as a headliner of Rolling Stone’s “Future of Music” official SXSW Showcase, dozens of artists made the decision to drop from the festival for its connections to RTX, formerly Raytheon, a supplier of arms to Israel to commit genocides against Palestinians.
Austin activists called for the boycott of SXSW and many musicians and artists obliged.
“We’re uncomfortable and conflicted being here…” Faye said upon entering the stage.
“We do not support war profiteers. We are also from Atlanta and we do not support the agreement between the APD and the IDF. Cop City will never happen.”
With that out of the way, Faye began her set.
Photo by Rachel Green
Faye filled her time filled with hits from her last three albums. The 14-song-long set had four different tracks from Atlanta Millionaires Club, and her newest album Underdressed at the Orchestra. Six songs came from her 2021 album, I Know I’m Funny haha.
Photo by Rachel Green
Faye’s set was reminiscent of her last set a Stubbs this past November, which we have a review for.
I was there for that too and as far as performances go, Faye continues to shine. She’s vocally commanding at all moments, the whiny singy yelps of Johnny and Johnny (reprise), the lingering swoons of But Not Kiss, and the classic rock screeches that come from Cheers, my favorite song to listen to live.
ANON KVRX PHOTOGRAPHER
“Feeling Good Today” was an especially fun track to see live with the entire band clearing except for Bass player Noor who sang alongside Faye.
It's mostly a little interlude song than anything else. A song about feeling good. It's fun and I think everyone in this audience mostly agreed with the autotuned giggly lyrics from Faye and Noor.
Faye Webster gave an amazing performance that has stuck through the entire weekend and festival wrap-up. Her beginning words gave a reminder to the fans who have stuck with her through her unprecedented rise in fame that she will not turn her back to her community of artists and collaborators.
Photo by Rachel Green