Leith Makes Vienna's B72 Feel Like Home
On a cold Sunday evening, B72 seemed to be the perfect place to be. The iconic show location offers an intimate and welcoming atmosphere. Particularly special is the view from the small balcony overlooking the stage, which was first taken by the Toronto duo Robinson Kirby. They performed original songs like “Waiting for the Rain” and “Hey Christine”, as well as a cover of “Kids” by MGMT. The duo was truly likable, making the audience laugh more than a couple of times while delivering their songs together with such grace and intimacy that I became a fan of them in a heartbeat.
At around 08:50 pm, Leith took the stage and from the first second, the crowd was hooked on her voice and presence. Together with Natasha on acoustic-, and Alex on electric guitar, she started with her song “Headspace“. “Running Wild“ followed, then “The Messenger” and “Love Vibes”. Adding to the ambience was the occasional faint sound of a subway passing, as B72 sits directly under Vienna’s U6 line.
Before performing “Short Enough”, Leith explained that the song is about people who make you feel small, something you should never allow yourself to feel. After delivering a heartfelt performance, the set continued with “Headlights”. Leith had her first tour only six months ago, making this autumn tour – with her stop in Vienna – her second tour and first time playing in Vienna. She told the audience that during her first tour, she fell in love with performing her favorite song “Landslide” by Fleetwood Mac which led to her in recording it in the studio after the tour finished. Following “Sad in the Sun” came her next track called “Bubble Bath”. The already dancing, swaying and softly singing crowd only intensified with this one. After the song ended, she talked about how many messages she receives where people tell her they go to her shows alone.
She told the audience that she could “NEVER” and encouraged everyone to say hello to the person standing next to them. It was such a lovely way of making everybody aware of each other and created good laughs and made the atmosphere to shift to an even cozier and warm feeling.
After playing her song “Just Life”, Leith spoke about being from Canada. She shared stories about the chronic homesickness she has felt since moving out at 18. However, she views the homesickness as a testament to the people she loves deeply. Her song “I Don’t Live Here Anymore” is exactly about that.
Another thing I loved was the What Happened box, which Leith invited the audience to drop in a card with a funny joke, heartbreaking story, or whatever the audience felt like sharing. This was followed by her newest single, “What Happened”, which came out this October.
“Cowboys don't have friends” followed right after, it being such a fun song with a little dance between Leith and Tasha at the end, where Alex joined for the second time this tour, making the trio dance together, and the audience laughed. Leith continued talking about her love affair with Canada, “I just can’t help it,” she said. Her song “Big Trees” is about not feeling quite yourself and trying to find your center. Before singing her song “Make You Smile,” she asks the audience who had come with a sibling or even had any. She continued by talking about her being the oldest sister makes out 50% of her personality. “Make You Smile", Leith said, "is about the people you love the most who also drive you crazy sometimes."
“Please sing along if you know – if you don’t, try!” was the perfect introduction for Leith’s song “To Hell With You”, which is one of her most well-known songs. Therefore, the audience didn’t need to pretend singing along with the words; most simply knew it by heart, making another incredible moment of dancing and singing along.
The Encore followed with “Good Time”, and before performing her last song, Leith thanked the audience, introducing it as a song to let out anger and frustration about whoever is making you angry. With shouting “Fuck it up” during the chorus, the crowd have it their all one last time during Leith’s song “Second Chances”. This song was truly the perfect ending of an incredible, warm and heartfelt show.
From the moment Leith stepped on stage, the entire B72 felt warm and intimate. She managed to capture her audience with her authentic self, occasional jokes, and insights about her life. The incredible idea of letting the crowd introduce themselves to each other as well added to the amazing, warm, and cozy atmosphere, opting for a perfect Sunday evening in Vienna, leaving the audience in awe and only waiting for her to come back to Vienna very soon – and I truly hope it’s sooner rather than later!
CHECK OUT ALL PHOTOS OF LEITH'S SHOW AT VIENNA'S B72 HERE:
REVIEW BY
Laura
The excitement and emotions of loving something so deeply, let it be a musician, song, concert, books or even sports, has always been a prevalent and influencing part of my life. Time goes by so quickly, and I love to indulge in the sense of community being experienced in music, with book-lovers or sports fans. My favorite part is the very connection you share with people, strangers becoming friends and the joy of discovering something new that you learn to love. Sharing my passions, newest discoveries, new/old recommendations and so much more is what brings me joy in my spare time and is what I like to do as a writer for this magazine.
PHOTOS BY
Lea
Usually you'll find me at a concert, somewhere between barricade and moshpit or of course behind my camera. I love not only documenting the energy on stage, but also capturing the little moments in between. Vienna based:)
