On November 5th at the WaMu Theater, LANY made their Seattle appearance for their “gg bb xx” tour. LANY , a pop band creatively going by an acronym for Los Angeles New York, has recently grown in popularity. The band was formed in Tennessee in 2014 and blew up with their hit song ILYSB. They have released 3 top 40 albums and continue to rise in popularity through the two albums that they dropped during the pandemic.
I started being a fan in high school when I had just moved from Shanghai back to my hometown, Los Angeles. A lot of their music makes references to different parts of Los Angeles, and California in general, which made me appreciate California and helped me adjust to being back in the U.S. after having lived abroad for six years. Many of their songs fit the summer beach playlist archetype and that was my go-to music genre in high school. Their music allowed me to romanticize my high school years in California. As I was driving through Malibu, I could put on their song “Malibu Nights” or when I was on the 405 I could listen to “up to me” which references the freeway. Even if you’ve never been to California, their music will evoke feel-good vibes for everyone.
Seeing them live was an amazing experience. Not only was it nice to finally do something that felt normal in terms of pandemic restrictions, but it was an unreal and nostalgic experience to be in the same room as the band that was the background music for my high school experience. The stage was simply set with just their instruments which made their performance much more personal. The lead singer, Paul Jason Klein, continually talked to the audience and interacted with us. He shared stories with us like we were all his friends who came to just hang out. He said he always loved to play in Seattle because even when they were a new and struggling band, Seattle always supported them. They even found their sound guy in Seattle and they’ve worked with him ever since. At the very end of their set, the word HOME was displayed on the huge screen behind them. Despite the 5,000 people in the audience, it truly felt much more intimate than any other concert I had been to.
So, If you find yourself looking for feel-good songs that are insanely catchy or want music that makes it feel like it’s summertime, I highly recommend LANY. The relatability and honesty in their lyrics are hard to come by in other pop bands. If you don’t know where to start with their music I would highly recommend the following songs from their setlist (recommended songs highlighted).
Setlist:
- get away
- Thick and Thin
- Super Far
- cowboy in LA
- never mind, let’s break up
- I Don’t Want to Love You Anymore
- heart won’t let me
- roll over, baby
- Hurts
- 13
- ex i never had
- up to me
- care less
- Hericane
- i still talk to jesus
- dna
- dancing in the kitchen
- Thru These Tears
- Malibu Nights
Encore:
- you!
- ILYSB