On January 17, 2018, BØRNS played a show at The Fox Theater in Oakland, California. Mikky Ekko and Charlotte Cardin opened.
Price $$$
Tickets for standing general admission were $36. There was a bar inside the venue with drinks for purchase if you wanted something during the show.
Venue 8/10
The Fox Theater is a cool venue in Oakland that stands out to me because of all the intricate details surrounding the stage and on the ceiling. The room is very visually appealing. There is an area for standing general admission that goes all the way to the back of the room. There’s a bar and tables towards the back for people who want to just kick back and enjoy drinks and music. There are a few levels in the standing area so that people have a good view even from towards the back. Additionally, there is a second level of seating for those who don’t want to stand. Those seats in the upper level are assigned. However, one flaw with this venue is that it doesn’t have very good air circulation. The Fox Theater has a capacity of almost 3,000. With that many people in one room (and a good chunk of them standing in close proximity) it gets hot really fast, compared to some other venues I’ve been to.
Crowd 6/10
The crowd was clearly enjoying the show. During BØRNS, most people were dancing around and singing all the lyrics of the songs. However, there were some people close to the front who were on their phones scrolling through Instagram during the opening bands, which bothered me because even though these bands are opening and maybe not necessarily the ones people came to see, they are still performers who want to put on a good show for the crowd and engage with their audience. Also, during the second opener (Charlotte Cardin) a fight between two drunk people broke out in the pit right in front of me, resulting in hitting and throwing drinks, which was distracting from the show.
Lineup 7/10
I was really excited to see BØRNS. I have been listening to him for a few years now and although I saw him at BFD 2016 (in Mountain View, CA), I was much closer to the stage this time and he had a much longer set. He performed the entirety of his new album, Blue Madonna. I hadn’t heard much of Mikky Ekko or Charlotte Cardin’s music, but I enjoyed their sets and I’ll definitely be checking out more of their stuff.
I loved this show. It was a great one to start 2018 with and I can’t wait for more! Be sure to check out all the bands/artists below.
See you at the next show!
Review Written by Emma Fong
Instagram: @emmafong_
Mikky Ekko:
Charlotte Cardin:
BØRNS: