If there was a music style I had to describe as ethereally tender and mystical, yet perfectly encapsulates the feeling of standing in the middle of a swarm of men while eternally wanting to scream your guts out – I would instantly push you towards Paris Paloma’s music.

Infused with Greek and biblical references, the 24-year-old UK artist somehow manages to incorporate serene vivid storytelling in her music while simultaneously arousing the most primal and aggressive feminine urges in her audience. Folk-music with a bit of a dark gothic twist, Paris Paloma dominated the stage on Jun. 26 at Bowery Ballroom and left the crowd screaming in utter awe at her evocative stage presence.

The concert started with a uniquely soothing and harmonic performance by The Army, The Navy. The American duo, consisting of Maia Ciambriello and Sasha Goldberg, serenaded the crowd with some fan favorites like “Alexandra,” and prepared the audience for a hypnotic evening at Bowery. Much like Paris’ music, the duo’s lyrics are jam-packed with intimate and poignant stories, and their music comes across as earnestly confessional. Their calming and intricate harmonies were done on their acoustic guitar, and their chord progressions felt fresh and extremely delicate.

When 24-year-old Giorgia Merolli was asked to describe her connection to Paloma’s music, she said: “I discovered Paris when Labor went viral, and I think one reason why that song went viral is because it’s the most descriptive universal way that we women can relate to us being women. I’ve never heard an artist depict so simply, yet impactfully, the female experience of oppression and shielding our real emotions just to conform to some sort of societal norm.”

Opening her set with the first song in her upcoming debut album “Cacophony,” Paloma desperately repeated the line “What did I do wrong /Will you tell me what I did wrong, what did I,” heartbreakingly resonating with her audience on the pains of feverously scrambling to figure out and reason the abhorrent behavior of past loves in aching toxic relationships.

With her vulnerability and absolute openness in songwriting, Paloma transported everyone from the vast hall at Bowery to what felt like an intimate private gathering. Candidly expressing her grief and struggles surviving in a patriarchal society, Paloma gathered something so uniquely personal to her and used it to forge an iron-clad bond of fury and understanding between every woman present in the room attentively listening to her potent voice.

Paloma also sang “as good a reason,” a lyrical concoction providing a refreshing perspective on ageism and self-love in a society that thrives on manufacturing insecurities. One of the most personally impactful songs for me from the night was titled “the fruits,” a discomforting but visceral exploration of uneven power dynamics and submissiveness.

Paloma surprised the crowd with some of her unreleased songs from her new upcoming debut album. My personal favorite was “the warmth,” which started with what felt like the most beautifully disassociating siren call, and continued with incredulously haunting symphonies and drum beats, making it remarkably distinctive from anything I’ve heard from her before.

Paloma ended the night with her viral TikTok song “labour,” the song which rapidly made her way to the Top 30 on the UK singles chart, and became an anthem for womanhood and the queer community. Screaming “labour” breathlessly on the top of my lungs was an utterly transcending religious experience. It was like we were all bound by one beautiful string – a string harboring chaos and feminine rage and fostering a phenomenon I can only describe as pure and raw human connection. All our collective tears and frustrations binded together, and I found solace and comfort in our universal aches. It was cathartic. I felt liberated.

Paris Paloma – Bowery Ballroom – June 26, 2024

Setlist: my mind (now), drywall, boys, bugs & men, notre dame, as good a reason, knitting song (unreleased), the warmth (unreleased), the last woman on earth (unreleased), bones on the beach (unreleased), the fruits, yeti

Encore: labour

Paris Paloma’s debut album “Cacophony” will be released on August 30.