Porter Robinson Returns to Seattle for Two Nights!
Porter Robinson, Jai Wolf, James Ivy - 9/21/2021 - WAMU Theater - Seattle, WA
A week after putting on his annual music festival, Second Sky, Porter Robinson embarked on the Nurture Live Tour, his headlining fall tour showcasing music from his latest studio album Nurture. With support from Jai Wolf and James Ivy, the tour originally was set to have only one show in Seattle; however, the first night sold out so quickly that a second night was added.
On the Nurture Live Tour, Porter can often be found playing piano or singing and dancing in the middle of the stage, interacting with the crowd and the visuals on screen (not just behind him but also below him) which brings a new and exciting element to these shows, far different from any of his previous tours. I personally love the new direction he took with this album; these shows feel more captivating and engaging than ever before, and it’s apparent in the crowd’s reactions.
Porter played the perfect mesh of old and new songs, starting the show off with an intro of stunning black and white visuals flowing into “Something Comforting,” then followed by “Look At The Sky,” which had the entire crowd singing aloud to the lyrics that were projected on screen and accompanied with beautiful visuals of different skies. He of course played “Shelter,” an old fan-favorite by Porter and his friend and fellow artist Madeon, as well as many other familiar favorites, including “Flicker,” “Sad Machine,” and “Language.”
A personal favorite moment of mine was before Porter played “Blossom,” a beautiful, soft song that he wrote about his girlfriend, Rika, when he explained the impact she has had on his life and in the making of Nurture. Porter had mentioned that Rika was at the show and he asked the crowd to yell “thank you, Rika!” before sitting down at the piano to play the song.
Another favorite moment was during “Divinity,” where the visuals on the screen portrayed graphics of a computer (The Nurturebook Pro) towards the end of the song, Porter picked up the laptop and held it with the camera facing himself and the audience as the video was streamed onto the screen behind him, something that I found unique, fun, and creative and that I’d never seen an artist do before.
At 11:11pm, fans wishes were answered when Porter Robinson re-appeared on stage for an encore. The crowd that roared loudly for him to come back were enthusiastic as ever as he performed a two song encore, “Trying to Feel Alive,” followed by “Get Your Wish,” his show ended with a delicate piano outro accompanied by booming fireworks on the screen behind him. I left feeling in complete awe of what I had witnessed and a hunger to experience it all over again. The production of this show is some of the best I’ve ever seen and has the most creative, stunning, and captivating work that I’ve seen an artist bring to life on stage. I can only look forward to experiencing what Porter has to offer in the future.
You can catch the rest of the shows from the Nurture Live Tour across the United States through mid November, and Porter Robinson’s Nurture can be found across all music streaming platforms.
Review by Mehlika Eski
Photography by Sarina Solem
Porter Robinson:
Jai Wolf + James Ivy
