Larkin Poe at The Vic Theatre in Chicago, IL

Larkin Poe brought their Bloom Tour to Chicago’s Vic Theatre as the audience got to see how far their career has blossomed. 

It’s always great when an opening act grabs everyone’s undivided attention as if they are the headliner. This was one of those moments as Amythyst Kiah had the Vic Theatre audience in the palm of her hand throughout her 30-minute set. As she told stories in between the songs to set the scene for where the inspiration for each of them, she connected deeply with the audience before a note was sung or strummed. Her magnificent voice and beautiful lyrics then sealed the deal.   

As she rounded out her set, she mentioned that she would be at the merch stand immediately after. Within minutes, there was a line leading halfway up the stairs as people waited patiently to say hi and get their merch purchases signed. This was more proof that she had picked up a lot of new followers from her performance. This was her last night on as a support act in this tour but we will definitely be on the lookout for future shows. 

Larkin Poe keeps going from strength to strength, and it’s no wonder since they are two of the hardest-working people in the industry at the moment. They’re constantly in the cycle of recording and releasing new music, and then touring it, not only across the US but throughout Europe too. While this summer’s tour has been canceled due to Rebecca Lovell and Tyler Bryant expecting their first baby in August, they already have tour dates lined up from October, right through until January next year! 

This tour is in support of their latest release, Bloom. The stage, accordingly, was decorated with various pots of flowers with a floral backdrop draped across the back. The evening was kicked off with the rocking “Nowhere Fast” from their latest release. This was followed up by a mash-up of “Summertime Sunset/Kick The Blues,” getting the evening was off to a roaring start!  

The evening was split into three sections. The first part was fully electric and saw the duo rocking out with huge smiles on their faces (fully reciprocated by the audience). Things were then stripped right down as the entire band unplugged and gathered around a single microphone for the acoustic bluegrass portion of the evening,  with Rebecca swapping her trusty Strat for a mandolin. Kicking things back up to full throttle, the remainder of the show was plugged in, with the duo back to kicking butts and taking names. 

No matter how many times you see these sisters live, you can’t help but be blown away by the abundance of talent they both possess. Rebecca’s voice is nothing short of phenomenal. The power and the range are impressive in their own right but then you add into the mix her bouncing and spinning around the stage to the point most of us would be out of breath, whilst still hitting every note! As if having a voice like that wasn’t enough talent for one person, you then put a guitar or mandolin in her hand, and boy does she have some skills! Megan, of course, proved once again why she firmly holds the title of “Slide Queen.” She adds some truly wonderful melodic lines to all of Larkin Poe’s songs – making it look effortless. Safe to say the “Slide Queen” title is not one she’ll be relinquishing any time soon! 

LARKIN POE
 
AMYTHYST KIAH
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THE VIC THEATRE
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About Kirstine Walton 412 Articles
Kirstine moved from the UK to Chicago in 2011, and has fallen in love with the city and its music scene. She enjoys combining her two biggest passions – music and photography. If there is a band with a guitar playing, chances are she’ll be there…camera in hand. Kirstine went to her first live concert at 7 years old, and hasn’t looked back since!