Chelsea Wolfe
Live @ The Tivoli, April 2025
Under Shades of Blue, Chelsea Glows Iridescent & True.
She reaches a place beyond me. Somewhere I can’t see - only feel. She’s in my pocket, in my ears on the bus - her voice echos around me…be it in grief, lust or unfamilar cerulean.
The perfect Blue Sunday Spent with Chelsea Wolfe in The Tivoli’s warm, familiar comforting walls. I am moved and struck always by her presence - as Chelsea’s hymns reverberate heavenly through every atom and particle in the room, I shed the day from my head and everything is erased except for the gaze behind my lens.
The connection between a girl and her ‘I’m Not Real: Bedroom Floor’ playlist is one built of strong fortitude, lore & privacy - sharing that with a room full of strangers without looking in immense agony or anguish, while also manoeuvring iso knobs in conjunction with the transcending mood lighting was the only challenge… which fell away almost immediately as Chelsea emerged from the shadows.
A delicate yet powerful voice - Chelsea dips between intricate words and belted head voice to deliver a nuanced, charged emotional performance. Known for her gentle presence, she utters few words between songs; but always ones of gratitude; thank you’s. Her band sit back, accompanying her every note with delicate precision. The wall of sound swallows me whole as I stand by the right speakers. Everything feels shiny, metallic.
A beautiful light-show of gentle strobes, sapphire in colour, blanketed Chelsea as she stood in the centre of the stage - her slow movements weaving between the stobes as they cast shadows of her dress, hands and boots. She’s deliberate with each word, taking time to restart a track a few in bars in.
She Reaches Out To She Reaches Out To She arrived at a perfect time for me. I first listened to it on a Shinkansen in Febuary around its release & immediately was pulled into this sapphire world she created. Her ability to craft audioscapes that feel transcendent and all-consuming grant me a place of deep solitude and safety. A place for me to shelter from the world. In ebbs and flows of my life; both ends of the spectrum; desire and hallowing - [SROTSROTS] filled this twisted yearning void I wasn’t sure anyone understood. It satiated me until I stumbled into circumstances that cut through that vast, idle emptiness. It was serendipitous to see her perform this, as I close off a certain chapter of my life, one that this record helped cushion towards the end of its cycle.
I’ve been a loyal listener since 2017’s Hiss Spun and have had the musings of Chelsea’s life guide me through the last (almost decade) of mine. Seeing her in flesh and blood always resonate for me, in a way that’s hard to verbalise …. But I will avidly adore Chelsea in any creative pursuits with awe & heart, always.
Thank you Sheree, birdsrobe & Chelsea for having me.
