There is no place like a ROLE MODEL concert - Ross MacDonald and Junia Lin agree!
- blondevibrations
- Nov 24, 2024
- 5 min read
Over two years since his last headline show at O2 Forum Kentish Town (in which we were in attendance!), ROLE MODEL clicked his ruby slippers three times and returned to London to headline O2 Academy Brixton on 15 November -- his biggest headline to date! And he brought some very special friends to Oz with him to celebrate officially bringing his most recent album, 'Kansas Anymore', over to the UK...
Opening with the first track of the new album, 'Writing's On The Wall', it's clear that ROLE MODEL, real name Tucker Pillsbury, is fully immersing his live show in the new 'Kansas Anymore' era that is upon us. Dressed in a cap and brown suede jacket, holding an acoustic guitar, Pillsbury truly looked the part for his cowboy inspired album promotion. Both this track and the following 'Look At That Woman' really highlighted the dedication of the London fans as they recite each word of the songs as if they were in a karaoke booth. Pillsbury swaps the lyrics in exclaiming 'Look at you!' to the audience during this song, sharing the audience's excitement to see him back on a London stage right back at them.
The duality of ROLE MODEL's recent album shines brightly in this new tour, with catchy and upbeat songs like 'Scumbag' being paired with stripped back, yearning songs such as 'Oh, Gemini' on the setlist, as they are on the 'Kansas Anymore' track list. You can read more about this album in our full album review here. 'Scumbag' live really provided Pillsbury with the space to spotlight the heavier country influence on his new tracks as opposed to his debut album, 'Rx', and corresponding tour which took a more alternative pop stance. Despite a guitar-based performance, Pillsbury managed to control the crowd and capture the audience's attention to the same level as when he was prancing around stage just two years ago at O2 Forum Kentish Town. While the repeated lyrics of 'Oh, but without you, what am I? Oh, Gemini / Please remember my name / Remember my name' in 'Oh, Gemini' haunted the iconic London venue, Pillsbury's presence on stage and the fans' excitement to hear the songs that ROLE MODEL has released since his last show shows his impact on many who will in fact remember his name.
A pleasant inclusion to the setlist was 'a little more time', a standalone single released in February 2023, not included in 'Kansas Anymore'. In the context of this new ROLE MODEL era, this acoustic love song takes an opposing heartbreaking tone. The chorus of 'I could use a / Rain shower, blue hour, two-hour drive upstate / Sunflower, willpower, maybe all it's really gonna take is / A little more time with you' changes from the narrative of a significant other being a motivating factor to the desire for more time with a person after a breakup. Pillsbury's live rendition of this single was an exciting addition to the (rightfully so) 'Kansas Anymore' focused setlist and shows the versatility of ROLE MODEL's discography.
Fans of ROLE MODEL know that when you go to one of his concerts, you're also signing up for an Ed Sheeran, Maroon 5, Ross Lynch and Sabrina Carpenter show, as we are repeatedly reminded by Pillsbury's introductions. Yet the audience were shocked by a surprise appearance from a cover of Harry Styles' 'Sign of the Times' excerpt after a sarcastic story. Combined with the suddenly warm stage lighting, the chorus of 'Just stop your crying / It's the sign of the times', you couldn't help but feel fuzzy and nostalgic. The audience were transported to Styles' Love On Tour, though I'm not sure if that's controversial to say with Pillsbury's feud with People Magazine for crowning Styles 'Sexiest Musician Alive'...
The crowd's euphoria of this surprise song continued with the following two songs, 'Superglue' and 'The Dinner', two upbeat songs that really lend themselves to a singalong between the crowd and Pillsbury. Who could deny singing a chorus like 'We're gonna make it through / A little bit of superglue / Stick my by side' from 'Superglue' in a crowd full of fellow fans? And it feels like the whole of London could hear the audience scream 'Take me home' during 'The Dinner'. Before switching to a more subdued tone, ROLE MODEL performed 'Slut Era Interlude', a transitional song in the album's narrative of the emotional journey during a breakup, with moves that would have People Magazine question his runner-up spot in the contest mentioned earlier.
Between tracks, ROLE MODEL tells a story about the production of 'Kansas Anymore' and how important a certain collaborator was -- instantly my mind wandered to a Zach Sang interview in which Pillsbury shares the significance of Ross MacDonald, The 1975 bandmember, in the process of building 'Frances'. Before we knew it, MacDonald had walked on stage ready to perform the song with ROLE MODEL and my years of supporting The 1975 flashed before my eyes. 'Frances', a tear-jerking, candid song about the regret of a breakup and having to continue without that person, was elevated further with blue lighting and the sombre final line of 'I don't know why I still can't get it right.'
After finishing the song and embracing MacDonald, Pillsbury mumbles 'He might as well stay for this one too', then seamlessly begins a cover of The 1975's 'Somebody Else', a rendition that has recently been shared on Spotify. In the same venue that The 1975 performed on their i like it when you sleep for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it tour (the album that 'Somebody Else' can be found on) back in 2016, to witness this rendition with MacDonald on stage felt like a full-circle moment and incredibly personal for so many fans in the crowd.
However, the surprise guests did not stop there, as later in the concert Pillsbury shares the story of being too scared to ask someone to play strings on his song 'Compromise'. Like clockwork, Junia Lin (Laufey's creative director, collaborator and twin sister) appears to accompany ROLE MODEL in this performance. With rays of light behind them, this performance was extremely vulnerable and moving, with the once belting crowd simply singing along peacefully and quiet. Again, it speaks volumes of Pillsbury as a performer to hold a crowd for both upbeat hits and emotional tunes.
The final three songs took fans down a yellow brick road of nostalgia, with 'blind' and 'forever&more'; of course, the perfect relief from the tears shed during 'Compromise' is to have a dance with ROLE MODEL. These tracks have absolutely stood the test of time with the crowd chanting each word of 'I've never seen something quite like you / I try to look away, but something's in the way / I think I'm going blind, I hope it doesn't change' in complete synchronicity. Closing out 'Deeply Still In Love' was the perfect finale, with the song's strong narrative structure being a real hit with the crowd. The audience excitedly took over the second verse of 'Well I heard you might've found somebody new...', while the lyrics of 'Nothing lasts always, forever' had a bittersweet feeling straight after 'forever&more' and just before the concert hall lights came back on.
We still talk about ROLE MODEL's last tour for 'Rx' at BVHQ like it was yesterday, we treat that London show like it was our own wedding days -- so it's safe to say that we had high expectations to see another performance. ROLE MODEL hit these high expectations with flying colours. The show was a wonderful exploration of heartbreak, as we saw in 'Kansas Anymore', and it was great to see how Pillsbury was able to incorporate his older discography to fit in with this new narrative. Another admiration was his chameleon-like ability to really embody this new country-inspired era, this show felt like a completely different genre to the 'Rx' tour, which really shows the strong musical and performance talent of Pillsbury. We hope that we will have to wait less time than another two years until we are reunited once again with Tucker!
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