Bathed in blue light, dark-pop artist Circe slowly emerged on to the stage at the Electric Ballroom in Camden last week. Stood next to a solitary neon blue crucifix which glowed ominously throughout her set, the London-based musician opened with the effervescent sounds of ‘My Boy Aphrodite’; the repeated lyric “you do kill me, always thrill me” encapsulating the immersive, all-consuming quality of her live performance perfectly.
Supporting American band The Midnight on their recent UK and EU tour, Circe’s blend of dystopian-yet-euphoric dark-pop was the ideal accompaniment for their synth-wave sounds, proved by the packed venue full of the band’s fans who had turned up early to see the emerging artist. Performing a mixture of tracks from her debut EP, She’s Made Of Saints (2020) and her most recent release, Drawing Wings From The Light (2023), her seraphic vocals and cinematic synths oozed vividly through the speakers.
Even without her trademark visuals and backdrop – scattered bunches of artificial flowers reminiscent of Juliet’s tomb in Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo & Juliet, and a montage of footage from films and her own videos – Circe’s theatricality was still as potent as ever. Predominantly written and produced from her bedroom, the drama that underscores Circe’s songs translated beautifully into a more grandiose setting. The glossy, bass-drenched beats of ‘Going Down’ – a song about being infatuated with a cheerleader – hit much harder live, whilst the lucid, intoxicating synths on ‘Ten Girls’ – a song about fuckboys – dripped with defiance. She also treated listeners to a new track, ‘Heaven’s The Other Way’, packed with more of her shimmering electronics and emotive vocals.
It was the formidable sound of ‘Blue Love’, however, that was the true highlight of the set. Described by the artist as a hybrid of her influences, including Karen O and The Cure in their Disintegration era, Circe’s invite to “come take a shot at it / I’ll let you rot with it” dazzled the crowd. As she performed it, she confidently paced across the stage, raising her arms and gesturing to the sky, radiating confidence and true star quality.
Although she would later appear on stage again during The Midnight’s set, Circe closed her performance with ‘Riot Of Sunlight’. As she played her acoustic guitar, a euphoric rush of dizzying electronics swelled around her. Rapturous cheers and applause at the end of her set proved that Circe’s live charm is undeniable. Her neon dreams and cell-tingling dark-pop fantasies are truly best experienced in the flesh.
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Photo Credit: Zak Watson
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