Concert Review: Dodie Clark
Dodie Clark is an English singer-songwriter, author, and YouTuber who recently performed at the 9:30 Club in Washington, DC. Many St. John’s students enjoy her indie style of music and attended the shows on Thursday, Sept. 5, or Friday. Sept. 6. She is known for her flowing lyrics, not only because of the melodies that align with them, but also because most of her fans can relate to the emotions she portrays. Her music particularly appeals to teens and young adults because of the similarity in age, but also because of their shared childhood.
I left school last Friday and went straight to DC to meet a friend for the show. As we walked up to the 9:30 Club we were greeted by a circle of fans. They immediately accepted us into their friend group and even offered us food. The group was made up of Dodie fans from around the city, and one person came all the way from Canada to see her perform. As we were laughing in a circle and playing card games, a beautiful and stylish woman walked up and said hello. I was so involved in the game that I didn’t even look up, but once the group got quiet I glanced away from my cards and realized the beautiful woman was Dodie herself. She said a quick hello and then went inside the club, leaving each of us star struck.
Since we were first in line, my circle of new friends were among the first 30 people in the club and we got to stand at the barricade, closest to the stage. It was an hour and a half before the opening act, Adam Melchor, performed, and at that point everyone was tired of waiting around. Melchor then opened for Dodie with five songs from his most recent album: I Don’t Want To See You Cryin’ Anymore, Real Estate, Joyride, Metadata, and The Archer. At first the crowd was annoyed with his overuse of the synthesizer, but once he performed the rest of his songs in a primarily acoustic style, his vocal range and overall sound were spectacular.
After Melchor finished his opener, the crew changed and set the stage for Dodie’s performance. A half hour later, Dodie performed her top hits: Arms Unfolding, Monster, Human, She, If I’m Being Honest, Secret for the Mad, 6/10, Burned Out, and then closed with In The Middle as her encore.
One thing Dodie does quite well with her music is incorporating her band into almost every song, and each member is involved thoroughly. Her bassist, Orla Garland, is well known in Ireland not only for her skills on the guitar, but also for her quirky pop songs that maintain a folk undertone.
Overall the concert was extremely lively and cheerful. Dodie always does a great job of making her music in a way that leaves the listener on a positive note but also preserves the raw emotion that she illustrates with her lyrics. If you haven’t already listened to Dodie or Adam Melchor, I highly recommend both artists.
