This (24-year-old) Teenage Messiah Makes You Feel Okay – Etta Marcus Live Review

Devour is a fitting name for artist Etta Marcus’ most recent release. The EP spits a silken venom over dreamy guitars and steady drum beats, and her live vocals are no less haunting than the studio versions. Last month I saw her perform at Hyde Park Book Club, a fitting date for her act, exactly a week before Halloween. 

Marcus opens with the raucous and uninhibited ‘Girls Are God’s Machines’. The studio version is a stunner and it translates seamlessly to the live show, riling up the energy in this basement venue. The rhythm slows in the next track, ‘Pointing At The Moon, Staring At Your Hand’. At the time of the performance it’s an unreleased song, so the fans soak it in having not heard it yet. This creates an attentive silence for Marcus’ vocal riffs to ripple over, the repetitive and warbling ‘you, you, you’ in the chorus enrapturing everyone in the space. Of course, Marcus treats the crowd to her popular first release next, 2021’s ‘Hide & Seek’, followed shortly by timid and endearing ‘Lovesick Boy Prays’ from stellar debut album The Death of Summer & Other Promises (2024). Another older one, ‘Mechanical Bull’, might go under the radar for the most part, but is lovely performed live. After that, two of my favourites, ‘Death Grips’ and ‘Skin Parade’, both very popular among fans, for good reason. The cathartic release in the sadistic lyrics of ‘Death Grips’ earns its top spot on Etta Marcus’ artist profiles on streaming services, and on the lips of the crowd here at Book Club. The room hums with harmonies to the melancholy but fiery track. 

We’re halfway through the setlist now and it’s a shame that the lighting hasn’t changed since the start. There are stark LED strips of cold, white light shining out at the crowd and down onto the band. It seems extremely disconnected with the atmospheric intensity of Marcus’s discography and detracts slightly from the experience. There may have been technical difficulties but it’s hard to dismiss from the overall set since lighting design can make or break a performance and I’ve seen footage from other dates of this tour where it is made… But at this gig, Marcus’ gorgeous, black, tiered skirt and pointed stiletto boots ensemble might have been better complimented by more brooding, gothic lighting than what we got.

Into the second half of the show, ‘Lucky Lady’, another new track from the Devour (2024) EP, is debuted. The powerful vocalisation that is the heart of the track underpins the romanticism of the sinister lyrics describing a twisted relationship between a killer and the singer, where bloodlust is trivialised by its proximity to devotion. The up-tempo bridge provides sonic levity and dramatic lyrical climax simultaneously, with the insinuation that the singer has weasled some power of their own. It’s an extremely satisfying listen, and Marcus’ live vocals stand the test of the fluctuating melody. Next, the soundtrack to dirtbag girlhood, ‘Girls That Play’, has the audience start to bounce. It’s one of my ultimate favourites and I’m just waiting for it to soundtrack the cinematic finale of an indie film, like it has in my head since the first time I heard it.

‘Nosebleed’, the avoidant anthem from the Heart-Shaped Bruise (2022) EP, follows and the tempo is kept high for ‘Little Wing’ which follows after that. After these, another shiny new track, ‘Slaughterhouse’ grips the crowd thanks to Marcus’ display of incredible vocals and the dedication of the band to the awesome instrumentation and production of the track. A gorgeous moment of the show. Penultimately is Etta Marcus’ most-streamed song, ‘Theatre’, and it delivers exactly what the studio version promises. The audience belt along with the conviction the track stirs up. Etta effortlessly closes with the brilliant opening-track on Devour (2024), which truly encapsulates the essence of what her live shows mean to fans: this (24-year-old) teenage messiah makes you feel okay.

Words by Erin Gascoigne-Jones