Recently, bedroom pop princess Clairo graced Frost Amphitheater with the “Charm Tour,” dedicated to her latest studio album “Charm.” Although Stanford pleasantly surprised Clairo with an exceptionally vocal crowd, the overwhelming heat of the venue stunned several attendees.
Earning her start on YouTube due to the popularity of her 2017 single “Pretty Girl,” Clairo’s discography is characterized by her soft singing voice, pensively poetic lyrics and whimsical indie pop sound. Claire Cottrill, whose performing name is Clairo, is most recognizable for her effortlessly elegant style.
Like Clairo, her opener Alice Phoebe Lou brought a casual coolness to the stage, exemplified by the chic choice of pairing a sage green sundress with an old baseball cap. Lou’s coolness, however, was compromised by the 101-degree heat that swept Stanford.
Lou’s set was interrupted nearly six times by different groups in the pit calling for medical attention; during her time on stage, three to five people in the pit fainted out of heat exhaustion. With medics rushing in and out of the pit during her performance, Lou eventually decided to cut her, normally, hour-long set in half due to the debilitating heat.
The temperature dramatically cooled between Lou and Clairo’s sets, offering those in the pit some much-needed relief. With the tension of Frost Amphitheater blown away in the highly favored breeze, it was time for Clairo.
The show began with the artist and her bandmates casually walking onstage and taking a seat while Clairo served them a mixture of whiskey and unsweetened iced tea. As the performers raised their glasses, they looked out into the crowd beaming with pride and camaraderie; they were including the audience in their toast.
Stanford’s stage was transformed to resemble a 1970s conversation pit complete with a massive overhead lamp and a small vintage table. From the on-stage toast to the set design, “Charm Tour” felt like an intimate house party, and Clairo was the generous hostess.
Clairo enhanced the intimate atmosphere by starting her set with the premiere track off her latest album, “Nomad.” An echoed guitar melody rang through the venue, followed by a steady drumbeat and Clairo’s voice singing out, “I’d run the risk of losing everything. Sell all my things, become nomadic.” It felt like a late-night talk with a friend, or a confession of residing feelings; Clairo has mastered concealing introspective lyrics with a catchy beat.
As she continued the concert with more pop-heavy tracks like “Softly” and “Add Up My Love,” Clairo encouraged fans to dance with her. Clad in a black and white striped dress and strappy red heels, Clairo led by example: swaying her hips, bobbing her head and tossing her wavy brown hair to the rhythm.
Ushering in the end of the night with 2018 fan favorite “4EVER,” Clairo was taken aback by the volume of the crowd passionately singing each lyric back to her. She challenged concert goers to keep it up, and Stanford did not disappoint. Overtaking the first verse of “Bags” and (according to Clairo) going ‘the hardest’ any crowd has ever gone for her during “Amoeba.”
Clairo’s charming stage presence and crowd engagement brought Frost Amphitheater fans back to life after suffering extreme heat conditions merely thirty minutes before her performance. The “Charm Tour” allowed Stanford’s audience to exhale, unwind and enjoy themselves after a stress-inducing 101-degree heat wave.