Konichiwa, bitches!

Last night I went to see Robyn perform at the new Austin City Limits venue, the Moody Theater.

Here’s a clip of one of her songs, in case you don’t know who the hell I am talking about:

For some reason, Robyn is not well known in America at all. If you are wondering what she sounds like, I guess you could call her the Swedish Lady Gaga, minus the performance art. Robyn’s songs are pure dancepop, fun, and a little bit naughty. She’s just naughty and cutting edge enough to be adored by the hipster set. Believe me, the place was crawling with hipsters in their little pashmina scarves, funny haircuts and toting their iPhones.

I’d also like to discuss the venue, since it is  brand-spankin’ new, and will be the new home of the TV show Austin City Limits.  Not every concert performed there will be filmed for the show.  A lot of people in the audience thought that Robyn’s set was going to be on TV, but it won’t be.  (Sadly) 

Anyway, from the outside, the building just looks like a big, boring block of painted concrete, right next door to the W Hotel.  Once you walk up the stairs to the entrance and go inside, it is fabulous.  There is a lounge area at the entrance which is on a balcony, and it has a nice view of downtown (and probably the lake, in the daytime).  There are plenty of restrooms and bars, so there is never a long wait. 

I was seated in the balcony, so I had to climb several flights of stairs.  There is another lounge area, with couches, chairs and tables, and more bars at the balcony level.  It’s really comfortable and roomy. 

Even though I was seated in the balcony, I still had a great view.  Apparently, the worst seat in the house is only 75 feet from the stage.  You can still see the performer’s face and you don’t feel like you’re watching from a blimp.  The place seats about 2500 people so it isn’t too huge, it still has an intimate feel to it.

Of course, the real test came once Robyn hit the stage.  From the minute she appeared until the end of the show a couple of hours later, she was a ball of energy.  Constantly moving, dancing, and making sure everyone had a great time.  I was really impressed by her.  I also loved that her band were all dressed like mad scientists. 

Once the show started, I was up on my feet dancing.  What else would you do at a Robyn show?  The lady a few rows behind me had another idea.  She thought it would be really fun to bellow at people to sit down for the first half hour of the show.  She sounded like a constipated cow.  Finally, I turned around and suggested that she stand up.  Right after I said that, Robyn played Don’t Fucking Tell Me What To Do, which seemed very appropriate to my situation. 

Pretty soon everyone was up and dancing, even the boys sitting next to me who gave off too-cool-for-the-room vibes when they arrived.  By the end of the show, they were dancing, singing along, and basically losing their shit.  Such is the power of Robyn.

The weirdest thing that happened was that Robyn ate two bananas on stage while she was performing.  I was wondering if maybe she is hypogylcemic, or maybe she just thought it would be funny.  The second time she did it, she threw the peel out into the crowd. 

It was so much fun to be in a room full of people who really loved the music, who were singing and dancing, and having a good time.  Usually in Austin, I have found the audience to be more aloof because…yeah, hipsters…I will stop using that word in this post now.

Here is the set list.  I got this off of a Google search but it seems right to me.  I was too busy enjoying the show to write down the songs.  Sorry if that makes me a bad blogger!

1.”Time Machine”
2.”Fembot”
3.”Cobrastyle”
4.”Call Your Girlfriend”
5.”Get Myself Together”
6.”Dancehall Queen”
7.”Dancing on My Own”
8.Medley: “We Dance to the Beat” / “Don’t Fucking Tell Me What to Do”
9.”Love Kills”
10.”Indestructible
11.”Stars 4-Ever”
12.”With Every Heartbeat”
Encore 1:
13.”You Should Know Better”
14.”Konichiwa Bitches”
15.”Be Mine!”

Encore 2:
16.”Hang With Me”
17.”Dancing Queen/Show Me Love”