'Wow! There are a lot of foreigners here. Is there a concert here tonight?" a taxi driver asked while dropping me off in front of the Impact Arena, Muang Thong Thani last Wednesday. "Billie who? Never heard of them. Are they popular?" Of course, there are some people who have never heard of Billie Eilish before. But definitely not the thousands of people gathered at the arena. In fact, most have been waiting more than three years to see this actual concert.
Eilish previously planned to visit Southeast Asia a few years back on her "Where Do We Go? World Tour" (2020), which abruptly ended due to the pandemic. As Eilish has restarted her current "Happier Than Ever The World Tour" in support of her self-titled second studio album, this is like a dream come true for fans around the world, including Thailand where the singer made a stop for a memorable live concert right after visiting Manila, Seoul, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. Apart from Eilish's virtual livestream concert Where Do We Go? that happened two years ago, I had never seen her live before. Those who are familiar with her music know there's a dynamism to it. Aside from well-known dance tunes like Bad Guy or Bury A Friend, Eilish also has a large amount of quiet and more meditative songs as well. So I was curious about what kind of show she would bring for the fans.
My seat was on the right side of the stage but on the 3rd floor of the arena, which was far enough to see Eilish as the size of an ant. Fortunately I was sitting quite close to the giant screen where I could see the entire show clearly. Before Eilish went on, a nice mix of modern and classic tunes were played for the waiting audience, from Tears for Fears' Everybody Wants To Rule The World to MGMT's Little Dark Age and even the entire 12 minutes of Isaac Hayes' Walk On By, which makes a good choice knowing that Eilish is using this to set up her diverse concert. The show started with a long drum solo by Andrew Marshall, followed on stage by Eilish's brother and also band member Finneas. Then Eilish, in an oversized shirt with a print that read "Drugs Took All My Friends", jumped on stage and promptly performed the first track Bury A Friend to screaming fans.
"It's my first time here," Eilish said to the crowd. "I hope we can party together." Despite being a stadium-type concert, her show felt very informal and intimate, which is a big part of Eilish's appeal. Even though she's this big pop star, I never feel that she's corporate controlled. For an entire show, there were only three people on stage, Finneas; drummer Marshall; and Eilish. There was no synchronised dance choreography like at Justin Bieber or Blackpink concerts. Instead, you see Eilish jumping, stomping, and running around kind of gracelessly on the huge stage. And I think that's a conscious choice and that's part of what makes her so loved by so many young fans. Eilish is putting on a concert that she wants to see. She grew up a Bieber and pop music fan. She loves concerts and stadium shows. She knows exactly what a teenage Billie Eilish super fan wants to see in concert, and then delivers it entirely.
Billie Eilish interacts with the crowd. (Photos: Live Nation Tero)
There was an amazing laser show. With a giant LED screen behind her, the stage was totally lit up with a long catwalk that went out to the audience, as Eilish always interacts with her fans during shows. She's very careful to pay attention to the entire audience. "There are two rules you all have to follow tonight," she said. "First is to be nice and never judge others, and the second is to have fun and jump around together." Eilish then performed a string of her hits such as I Didn't Change My Number, NDA, My Strange Addiction, You Should See Me In The Crown, Ocean Eyes and Billie Bossa Nova, where Finneas showcases his guitar skills.
During Halley's Comet, the graphic screen behind the stage played the image of a beautiful carousel, which appeared to transport the singer to a different place. This leads into other tunes like I Love You, and Your Power, which are acoustic duets with Eilish and her brother. Their relationship and the music they produce really reminded me of brother-sister duo Karen and Richard Carpenter.
And then we got to the part that was quite touching. While the group started performing the song Getting Older, the big screens showed home videos of Eilish as a kid, time spent with family and friends. It wasn't that long ago that this international superstar was young and innocent. After a series of ballads, Eilish asked the audience to stand up and get ready for the next song. As expected, the audience started dancing when the bassline of Bad Guy kicked in. Confetti dropped from the ceiling while everyone danced and had a great time. It was fun to witness that. The concert closed on another highlight with the song Happier Than Ever.
There's an intimacy to watching Eilish and her brother perform live the songs that they wrote, which is a rarity in a pop music concert.
The set list.
A smiling Billie
