Brockhampton’s March 3rd and 4th shows at The Warfield for their Love Your Parents Tour marks my 5th and 6th time seeing them as a group. How much America’s favorite boyband has blown up since I first saw Kevin Abstract in early of 2017 — and even since I caught them on their first tour together back in October — is insane. Going from a hundred people at a small bar in Oakland to selling out The Warfield in a matter of months must be a dream come true for them. Of course, I wouldn’t exactly know, since Kevin’s answer to an audience member’s question, “How does it feel to have come this far already?” during the Saturday show was a non sequitur “GAY PEOPLE”–which was really just an echo of his response to the previous question, “What do you like most about San Francisco?”. I can’t say they don’t deserve all the praise; the dudes never stop working, and the art they’ve been making since June hasn’t missed a single step. But would their live energy prove to hold in a larger setting?
jennifer’s tour vs love your parents tour pic.twitter.com/0LKJ9obysA
— isa (@artbIues) March 6, 2018
The shorter answer is yes; the shows themselves were better than ever. While I really enjoyed the more intimate feel that their gigs at Social Hall SF had, hearing 2,000+ voices echo every one of their iconic hooks and verses made me so happy. From the moment Ameer Vann began his dramatic opening act of walking on stage and putting on the trademark orange jumpsuit, the boys themselves displayed more energy and stage presence than anyone I’ve ever seen in a live setting; even after an hour of mercilessly moshing, they really know how to get the crowd moving every time. This is all the more impressive considering that they’ve virtually been touring for months.
A huge part of them being able to uphold such energy comes from them wisely scattering their slower hits, like “FACE” and “BLEACH”, throughout their set, so that the crowd can catch their breath for a few moments before they get back into another twenty minutes of pushing and screaming. Also, each night, they incorporated an intermission, during which two of the members had a dance battle. And I’m glad they did; I never would’ve known how entertaining it is to see JOBA flail his long, lanky body — he was the champion of both nights. The intermission also consisted of a bit where the members lounge around on the couches on stage and answered a few of the crowd’s questions, during which Kevin let an eager fan come on stage to rap “JUNKY” acapella at the fan’s own request. It’s little stuff like this that shows that they really want everyone to have a good time at their concerts.
Not to mention, BH just sounds phenomenal on stage. Whenever one of them opts for singing/rapping their lyrics rather than letting the crowd hit it for them, they are almost always spot on. I remember a few times where I was thoroughly amazed with Dom McLennon’s ability to rap just as quickly as he does on some of their studio recordings. I also fully enjoyed the minor vocal tweaks that they made to some of their songs; for example, for a large part of the show, Kevin and Dom were using autotune on their microphones, either to harmonize with another member or to sing their parts in different ways than they sound on the records. I found this an interesting change that spiced up the set even more. For the two songs that he sang, “SUMMER” and “TEAM” (or “EVANIE” to be specific), Bearface was incredible. As usual, he was allowed the entire stage to himself so that he and he alone could serenade the crowd with his heavenly vocals.
Overall, the shows were fantastic. If you ever question why Brockhampton are a boyband, go to one of their shows. The brotherhood that emanates from the stage is undeniable, and you can tell that they have the utmost respect for each other. I mean, they’re even on board with the whole matching wardrobe and–to a degree–choreography thing. Aside from that, they put on a kick-ass show that is worth every penny. I can’t wait for TEAM EFFORT to drop, so that I can inevitably buy a ticket for the next one.
Written by Anthony Vega
Photos by Anthony Vega and Veronica Irwin