Billie Eilish’s face is blown up across a four-sided, NBA-style jumbotron. Below, tracked by camera crews, she prowls a bare stage akin to a boxing ring – a rectangle slapped in the middle of the arena, fans everywhere she turns. Such media-heavy, mega-watt staging is immediately at odds with ambiguous opener Chihiro: “You won’t forget my name, not today, not tomorrow, kinda strange, feelin’ sorrow,” she murmurs, featherlight, over distant, rumbling subwoofer and watery electric guitar.
The challenge for Eilish’s arena tours has always been to balance her talent for intimacy with her clear interest in spectacle. It’s unfortunate but perhaps inevitable that the intricate production quirks of tracks such as Lunch and Wildflower get lost in the mix tonight, with just the drums pounding through, but she compensates with astute theatrics; at still just 23, Eilish offers some of pop’s sharpest commentary on the push and pull of fame.
Seizing control of the big screens for her teen-villain breakthrough single Bad Guy, Eilish dodges the limelight of its infamous “might seduce your dad” brag by turning a handheld camera first on her band and then on her screaming fans, focusing more on the song’s reception than its delivery. The crowd is hitting serious decibels – running the risk of drowning out Eilish and band throughout – but still she goads them: “Louder!”
She casually goes full superstar on Happier Than Ever, showcasing all she does best – a whispery intro, a bittersweet slow-build with lacy vocals, and a stormy, demolition-grade payoff – before a final whiplash in tone for closer Birds of a Feather, last year’s omnipresent, soft-rock romance. Tonight, its frothy optimism is played up with stage projections of a sunny green field, and only a nod towards the nihilism: “If I’m turnin’ blue, please don’t save me,” she breezes.
Yet still she paces the perimeter like a caged lion, staring out at a sea of frantic faces, obviously fascinated (and maybe even disturbed) by the power dynamics at play. Eilish is the rare pop star just as interested in watching her audience perform, and it feels both intimate and combative to be looked at like that.