UPSAHL Brings The Heat to The Bowery Ballroom

Alternative pop artist UPSAHL brought the party to Bowery Ballroom on October 1 at the New York stop of her Melt Me Down Tour.

UPSAHL. Photo: Sophia Strange

Chances are that UPSAHL’s work has reached your ears in one way or the other. With multiple viral hits to her name and collaborations with some of today’s biggest names under her belt, UPSAHL’s sharp production skills and lyrics that either pull you to the dance floor or inspire a serious bout of self-reflection were on full display in the Ballroom on October 1.

Accompanied by opening acts Zoe Ko and Conor Burns, UPSAHL delivered an electric night of original songs, surprise covers, and even an exciting performance of a new unreleased track that made the Ballroom feel closer to a party only seen in movies.

Photo by: Buscar Photo (www.buscarphoto.com)

Tucked away behind an unassuming facade and a small set of stairs is the iconic Bowery Ballroom, polled as the best club in America by Rolling Stone in 2013. While the outside may be easy to walk past unintentionally, the venue itself creates the perfect atmosphere for a show like UPSAHL’s that cannot be missed- upon descending the stairs, you enter a swanky speakeasy style bar with a pre-show playlist blasting over the speakers. Once you ascend the stairwell into the main event, the venue opens up into a fascinating balance of a larger-than-life yet incredibly intimate theater. 

This personal-yet-sparkling energy would be capitalized upon and matched perfectly throughout the evening, with UPSAHL and both opening acts looking almost untouchable upon the stage until they were right there at the closest corner of the stage or weaving through the audience mingling between sets.

The night’s performances opened with Zoe Ko who delivered unapologetically gritty, girly, alternative pop rock tracks like “DIRT,” her song that caught the internet’s attention by asserting that the most fun a girl can have is donning a fur jacket, putting some mud in her purse, unapologetically offering no explanation, and absolutely jamming out. 

Zoe Ko. Photo: Sophia Strange

Supporting act number two of the evening came in the form of alternative artist Conor Burns, whose musical career seems to be exponentially growing with over 70 live shows and several single and EP releases under his belt so far with no signs of stopping. His guttural lyrics paired with the power of live instrumentals and a larger-than-life stage presence brought even more energy into the room.

Conor Burns. Photo: Sophia Strange

Starting her set with her newest single “Tears on The dancefloor”, the excitement when UPSAHL came on stage alongside touring drummer Jake Richardson and guitarist Sal Suriano was beyond electric- it’s no doubt the stage was hers from the moment she stepped out in a stunning chrome-and-teal outfit that caught the light with every move.

UPSAHL. Photo: Sophia Strange

Balancing high energy tracks like “NO HANDS” and “Last Supper” that had the audience dancing and songs like “Antsy” where it felt as though it was just her and her microphone, UPSAHL brought the audience to her level with an invitation to not care about anything but experiencing the moment, letting go, and having fun throughout the first half of her set. 

After beginning her track “SLAYYYYY,” UPSAHL and her band stepped off of the stage and let the audience carry on singing- which they did word for word- before returning in a bright red latex costume change and her second most recent single, “SUMMER SO HOT”. 

UPSAHL. Photo: Sophia Strange

Impossibly enough, the powerful set only got more exciting as UPSAHL continued into a remix of her track “Sunny D” and the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s “Heads Will Roll,” bringing both opening acts out to party. 

Photo: Sophia Strange

From there, UPSAHL delivered an incredibly intimate performance of “0 OR 100” sat at the edge of the stage, a preview of the unreleased track “CUT EM OFF” that playfully complains about having to cut off other guys when one gets serious, and sang alongside her younger sister who was brought on stage for “Arizona,” named after their home state, and “Good In Bed,” a track off of Dua Lipa’s Grammy Award winning album Future Nostalgia that UPSAHL co wrote. 

UPSAHL and sister Ryan. Photo: Sophia Strange

UPSAHL closed the set out with “WET WHITE TEE SHIRT” and the viral track that put her on the map for most titled “DRUGS,” appropriately donning a white t-shirt with “I <3 NY” drawn out in sharpie- promptly before dousing herself and the audience with a water bottle. 

UPSAHL. Photo: Sophia Strange

UPSAHL’s Melt Me Down Tour may be wrapping in the United States in a matter of days in San Francisco, but the party doesn’t stop there- she’ll be continuing the tour in Europe through November, starting with Academy 2 in Dublin on November 7. An electrifying evening of letting go of inhibitions and letting yourself be whatever you need to be that night- whether that be dancing, crying, or somewhere in between- UPSAHL’s shows bring the party and the personality without apology.

UPSAHL | October 1, 2024 | Bowery Ballroom | Manhattan, NY

Setlist: Tears on the dancefloor, NO HANDS, Monika Lewinsky, IDFWFEELINGS, Toast, Wish You’d Make Me Cry X SMARTY, All My Friends Are Rich X Time of my Life, MoneyOnMyMind, Into My Body, Antsy, Condoms, Last Supper, SLAYYYYY, Summer So Hot, Sunny D X Heads Will Roll*, SICK PRETTY MIND, 12345SEX, CUT EM OFF, 0 OR 100, Arizona, Good In Bed, GOOD GIRL ERA X That’s Not My Name*, Thriving, Lunatic, WET WHITE TEE SHIRT, Drugs
Encore: People I Don’t Like, Sad Sorry After Party

Zoe Ko

Conor Burns

UPSAHL

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