Melanie Martinez takes sold-out crowd through journey

THE TRILOGY TOUR

MELANIE MARTINEZ, BEACH BUNNY,

SOFIA ISELLA

NATIONWIDE ARENA

COLUMBUS, OHIO | JUNE 13, 2024

By Neil Shumate, OOTB Publications

Songstress Melanie Martinez brought a crowd of all ages to their feet last night, causing fans to dance, clap, jump and sing along at the top of their lungs. Many fans in the venue wore unique, colorful Bjork-like attire; all inspired by Martinez’s contagious style and sense of fashion.

The twenty-nine-year-old first came onto the scene as a contestant on Season Three of The Voice as one of the Top Six more than a decade ago and she continues to grow and evolve musically in many ways.

A semi-circle video backdrop and active dance troupe entertained fans throughout the fast-paced two hour set. A two-piece band composed of a drummer and string player amplified and enhanced the projected electronic beats and riffs, all fronted by Martinez’s solid hypnotic live vocals, which are most often compared to Lorde and Lana Del Ray.

The tour’s title (The Trilogy Tour) comes from the setlist as Martinez showcased each of her three album releases chronologically in parts or sections. The gothy, dark-vibing stage sets matched each album with different theatrics and costumes to reflect certain songs--a journey through the story of Cry Baby from infancy (Cry Baby, 2015 album) to adolescence (K-12, 2019 album) to death, forming into The Creature (Portals, 2023 album).

Although the lengthy setlist of back-to-back performances prevented substantial direct crowd interaction during the show, towards the show’s conclusion, Martinez bashfully and humbly thanked her adoring fans and expressed sincere gratitude to all the “cry babies.”

Earlier in the evening, modern garage/punk rock Chicago based Beach Bunny warmed the crowd up with pleasing catchy tunes and solo artist Sofia Isella also opened with a dazzeling performance having a lyrical emotive style reflective of Fiona Apple or Ani DiFranco.

See Tour Dates Here

MELANIE MARTINEZ (click photos to enlarge)