Magdalena Bay Live @ Here at Outernet

A night that brought so much but little at the same time; Magdalena Bay‘s weird and wonderful show was something to enjoy, but we were still asking for more.

Consisting of Mica Tenebauam (lead vocalist) and co-friend Matthew Lewin (producer with a slight touch of vocals), Magdalena Bay have continued to rise following their acclaimed sophomore album ‘Imaginal Disk’. A universe that follows the story of True – played by Tenebauam – as she masters what it means to be human after being enhanced in the form of an ‘imaginal disk’ and questioning the nature of human consciousness.

With a summer that can’t be ignored and upgrading to larger venues as demand was reached, Magdalena Bay’s first sold-out show in the heart of London was met by die-hard fans whose Spotify Wrapped is about to be filled by Charli XCX ‘Brat’, Caroline Polachek and an underground artist no one has heard of (at this rate talking about myself), but Magdalena Bay fit that mould. As a fan of them myself, a backdrop of a blue sky filled with a sun reminiscent of a CD, a pair of chrome hands, and a silver orb alongside a mirror prop that presented visuals to portray the story we were envisioning sat across the screens of the Outernet. It all came together with energy, propelled by Tenebauam as she jumped from one side of the stage to another with a series of costume changes, fans were sure having fun, but I wanted more. The drama that oozes from their music was missing, the interaction between each song and the audience was lost and sometimes felt rushed.

Reminiscing a tamer version of 100 Gecs, Magdalena Bay didn’t hide away from a filled setlist. With 21 tracks about to come our way, the duo opened up with an uproar of ‘She Looked Like Me!’ to a fan favourite of ‘Killing Time’. Followed by a striking 90s take on the ‘Vampire in the Corner’ and ‘You Lose’ that reminisces the old days of the duo as alt-rock soared through the room. Then closed off with ‘The Ballad of Matt & Mica’ and the encore of ‘The Beginning’.

All in all, Magdalena Bay are heading the right way. They are an exciting experimental duo. One that have been cited as the autumn version of the summer hit ‘Brat’ (apologies for bringing that up twice), and couldn’t agree more. However, on the night that matters, the duo didn’t hit the five-star mark.