Philadelphia was bathed in green in support of the Eagles football team who were about to embark on their journey to the 2023 Super Bowl in just a few days time, but none of that mattered on the evening on February 9th. Located in the Fishtown neighborhood of the city, The Fillmore was preparing to host a Super Bowl of their own: a sold out performance by Tove Lo on her Dirt Femme tour.
The doors has just opened when I arrived at the venue to see a miles long line of people waiting to enter. Donning minimal clothing, dominatrix harnesses and plenty of leather, hundreds of people were amped and ready to see Tove Lo perform for the first time in years. Inside the venue the energy was high. Lines formed at all 5+ bars within the concert hall and the merchandise line wrapped around the entire venue and then some!
Kicking off the evenings festivities was electro-pop singer Slayyyter who, in her own words, makes music about “sex, drugs and partying”. Opening her set with “Erotic Electronic”, Slayyyter captivated the crowds attention. In an all black jumpsuit with a black chest piece, leather hat and dark black sunglasses she bounced across the stage accompanied by her DJ, Owen Jackson (who was wearing an Eagles jersey)! Slayyyter’s 11 song setlist was chock full of fan favorites like “Mine”, “Butterflies”, “Clouds” and my personal favorite song “Troubled Paradise”. Slayyyter’s energy never wavered throughout her performance and she chose to conclude her set with her high energy single from the movie Bodies, Bodies, Bodies — “Daddy AF”.
Between sets, the entire venue was buzzing. The excitement of queer icon Tove Lo’s arrival was increasing by the minute and the desire to let loose and rave was becoming unbearable for many patrons in the crowd. Finally, just around 9pm, the lights went dark and Tove Lo’s band took to the stage. Opening her set with two high energy hits from her album Dirt Femme, Tove Lo waisted no time with “Pineapple Slice” and “Attention Whore”. The entire crowd was jumping and the front barricade slid back and forth against the pressure from the crowd.
Turning around to see the venue behind me, a sea of 2,500 people were dancing around the venue with all eyes on Tove Lo. A brief outfit change ensued halfway through the performance, before Tove dove into “Talking Body”, where she is famously known to flash her chest to the crowd. Throughout her entire 17 song setlist and three song encore, Tove Lo looked like there was no place else she would rather be. Euphoria is the true word to describe the night.
Tove Lo’s setlist spanned throughout her entire discography with songs including “Moments”, “Are u gonna tell her?” And “True Disaster”. Before leaving the stage to prepare for her encore, Tove Lo ended her main set with “Call On Me”, the absolute party jam she released with SG Lewis. The crowd wasn’t fooled by Tove’s early departure and after a brief 2 minute pause, she returned to the stage for an intimate performance of “cycles”, which the Philadelphia crowd specially requested she perform. Sending off her fans in the most high energy way possible, Tove ended her set with her almost decade old smash hit “Habits (Stay High)” and the lead single from Dirt Femme, “No One Dies From Love”.
After the show’s conclusion, fans poured onto the surrounding streets outside of the Fillmore but the part was far from over. Groups of people danced to Tove Lo blasting from someones nearby iPhone, while others headed next door to Brooklyn Bowl for the after party. Needless to say, Philadelphia was more than impressed with Tove Lo’s performance that evening. Seeing Tove Lo perform her inspiring and unapologetic music with such a passion was a moment to remember. As a huge fan of Tove Lo, Thursday nights performance was exactly the reason I continue to come to her tours. For her first independent release and independent tour, Tove Lo really blew everyone out of the water. I can’t wait to see what the future holds for her!
Slayyyter
