Fans were chanting Billie Eilish’s name long before she appeared for the first date of her three-night residency at Shepherd’s Bush Empire. When the 17-year-old finally emerged — rising from the abdomen of the giant metal spider straddling the stage — she was greeted by a wall of screams as hysterical as the nightmarish set design.
It isn’t difficult to understand the devotion the LA singer inspires. From her brooding lyrical preoccupations and disturbing promotional videos, down to her penchant for outsized streetwear, Eilish breaks the mould of the squeaky clean, eager-to-please teen idol.
Combine these with a fresh approach to pop songwriting that skilfully incorporates elements of hip hop, jazz, folk and electronic music, and it’s little wonder she’s being touted as the most exciting young talent since Lorde.
Accompanied by a drummer and her multi-instrumentalist brother/co-writer Finneas O’Connell, Eilish’s varied set mixed songs from her 2017 EP, Don’t Smile At Me, with standalone tracks and singles from her forthcoming debut, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? When I Was Older proved a standout, its mix of glockenspiel-style synths and blistered sub bass accentuating the vulnerability of Eilish’s delicate, Auto-Tuned singing.
So too was the elastic electro-pop of Bellyache, and recent single Bury A Friend, a brilliantly barbed lullaby combining the squall of dental drills with a rhythm redolent of Kanye West’s Black Skinhead.
Be it her semi-whispered vocals or minimal arrangements, Eilish has long acquitted herself as a master of restraint on record. These delicate dynamics were sometimes lost last night beneath the frenzied screams of fans.
But when it all came together, as per the truly astonishing rendition of When The Party’s Over, it was a real privilege to be present.
