REVIEW: Lucy Dacus Brings Forever Is A Feeling to UPAC
07/22 @ UPAC, Kingston
Photos by Berrie Sattler
“...she had us in the palm of her hand, and we were all just along for the ride.”
As I made my way down I-87 with my pre-concert playlist blasting on the car stereo, I felt the excitement building in my gut as it drew ever closer to my first time seeing a show at Ulster Performing Arts Center (UPAC) in Kingston. It was also my third time seeing Lucy Dacus in concert, but the first since the rise of boygenius and her transition into a headlining act (one of the most deserved ascensions I can think of in recent memory). Her current tour for 2025’s Forever Is A Feeling gained national attention when Dacus announced that she had obtained the necessary credentials to officiate weddings and would subsequently take the opportunity to marry LGBTQIA+ couples during breaks at her concerts. While there would be exchanges of vows at UPAC on Wednesday night, we were all in store for a transcendent experience of our own.
Kicking things off for the evening was Smidley, the exuberant solo project from former Foxing lead singer Conor Murphy. Hailing from St. Louis, they immediately made an impression with an alternative indie sound with some really big and impactful percussion combined with an electric guitar tone so bright and sharp it almost sounded crystalline, at times dialed back to a more ambient and dreamy vibe. There was even a stripped back song featuring just vocals and acoustic guitar, and at one point Murphy broke out a trumpet to showcase some excellent range as a performer.
“It feels like we shouldn’t be playing in a place as beautiful as this,” Murphy joked. “It seems like a place Lucy Dacus would play, though! We’re dirty and smelly and honestly probably ruining it a bit just being here.”
Speaking of Lucy, the woman of the hour made a brief surprise appearance to provide some vocals on the band’s song “Capstone” for which she also appears on Smidley’s newest record, Murphy Horse. The set served as a high-energy warm up that got the crowd pumped up for the show still to come, and the band exited the stage right down the center aisle of the theater slapping fives to fans as they headed to work their own merch table in the lobby.
After a brief intermission which included a nice lobby coffee break and what some venue staff described as the longest merchandise line they’d ever seen at the theater, Lucy and the band made their way out as “Calliope Prelude” played over the sound system before they settled into their instruments and plunged into “Hot & Heavy” off of 2021’s Home Video with Lucy taking her opportunity to pace the stage like a lioness on the prowl, the front row roaring in approval. As the set started to build momentum, the theater filled in and the place was absolutely packed wall to wall with everyone in the room on their feet, bouncing to the beat like the tide on the open sea.
The stage lighting delivered a dramatic switch up for “Ankles” to bathe Lucy and the band in gold, and it’s right around then that I start to think about just how incredible her voice sounds in a live setting. It’s almost exactly like her records, and the backing band that included guitar, bass, drums, strings and keys played every song flawlessly.
“I don’t think I’ve ever played Kingston before,” she mused between songs. “It’s such a beautiful area, I feel like I’ve really fallen in love with this part of the world.” Lucy has a calm demeanor on stage, and her stage banter is warm and welcoming. She even ventured into the crowd at one point, coming down the side aisle while singing (and ending up about ten feet away from me), shaking hands with fans all the way to the back of the room. Before performing “For Keeps”, she quipped, “You should sit for this part because I’m gonna sit too,” as a huge and plushy-looking vintage couch was wheeled out and placed in the center of the stage.
“This couch has been through a lot,” she told us. “We’ve been on tour for a year and a half!” She was then joined on the couch by Mr. Smidley himself, Conor Murphy, who returned the favor and cameoed for a performance of “Bullseye” which saw the pair exchange verses while sitting down like they were hanging out jamming in a basement. Afterwards, Lucy told us to stand up and every single person in the theater obliged. It was clear at this point that she had us in the palm of her hand, and we were all just along for the ride.
“Who here is gay?” she asked the audience to a loud ovation. “Not surprised,” she said with a laugh before adding, “It’s cool if you’re straight too! This next one is for anyone who almost raised their hand just now.” It was a touching dedication for “Best Guess”, one of the more poignant and emotional tracks on Forever Is A Feeling (which says a lot, because it’s an incredibly emotional and poignant collection of songs). The main set closed with the title track from the new record, before the band returned to the stage almost immediately to send up the idea of making fans wait for an encore with Lucy openly saying she’s never understood its cultural significance.
The encore started off with the only boygenius song of the night, “True Blue”. After that, Lucy addressed the crowd one last time to encourage us to get loud and make this one count. “I know sometimes in a beautiful theater like this, you feel like you have to be all demure and what not,” she joked. “But I want to hear you singing along to this one if you know the words.” With that, she launched into a performance of “Night Shift” that just might have been the greatest encore song I have ever experienced in person, with seemingly every person in attendance belting out every single word. You know it’s a top-tier audience singalong when even the artist is a bit taken aback, and that’s exactly what happened here; as the crowd came in on the first lyric of the song, Lucy let out an “Oh, wow!” As I found myself swaying with my seat neighbors, I couldn’t help but wail every line of the outro chorus before the curtain came down on what I can only describe as one of the most cathartic moments I’ve experienced at a show.
During the set, Lucy informed the crowd that this tour is winding down with only a handful of shows left on the schedule. She said that after this batch of gigs, it’s back to the drawing board. Whatever comes next, I and all the rest of her incredible fans will be waiting with baited breath. Forever Is A Feeling is the perfect name for this album and tour, because Lucy Dacus and her band delivered a performance I wished could’ve lasted forever.
