For the fourth year running, Pitchfork Music Festival returned to London. This year’s edition saw a staggering 87 acts across 19 events in the city’s premier live venues including Victorian theaters, iconic pubs, and nightclubs. The result of the American presidential election during the week was felt in London, a city whose identity has been shaped by the immigrant and queer communities that the president-elect has demonized. But six days of music offered comfort as people took a moment to luxuriate in Cole Pulice’s warm saxophone tone, embraced one another after hearing Kae Tempest’s words of hope, and surrendered themselves to the mosh pit at Snow Strippers. Here are five highlights from the week.
Mabe Fratti - EartH Theatre, Wednesday, November 6
The Guatemalan cellist Mabe Fratti cooly walked across the expansive EartH Theatre stage in socks. She took her seat at the far end of the stage and began plucking the stomping bassline of “Kravitz,” the grungy opener from her latest album, Sentir Que No Sabes. Tonight this East London stage offered a glimpse of Mexico City’s avant-garde scene, where ambient tinkerers, rock bands, and classically trained musicians freely collaborate. Fratti’s cello playing exists at the center of this Venn diagram, flowing between ornate melodies, fidgety Arthur Russell-esque intonations, and distorted, face-melting solos with ease. At one point during the evening, guitarist Hector Tosta and drummer Gibrán Andrade sat down on stage to gaze at her, spellbound as we all were by seeing a virtuoso at work.
Snow Strippers - Village Underground, Thursday, November 7
Topics overheard outside Village Underground included: Is Nettspend cringe? Why did Drain Gang leave Year0001? Are they checking IDs? Detroit duo Snow Strippers have a devout Gen Z following, which was well represented on Thursday night. Some have compared the buzzy duo’s EDM-pop and heady trance to one perpetual, numbing climax, and when Tatiana Schwaninger and Graham Perez rushed the stage to “Just Your Doll,” it seemed unlikely they could keep up this frenetic energy for long. But what followed was a mesmerizing hour of icey, revving synths, unrelenting strobes, and bouncing phone screens. When the 8-bit synth of “It’s A Dream”—whose 2023 remix features Lil Uzi Vert—first blared out, it received such a feverish response I had to double check Uzi hadn’t actually popped out.
Laraaji - ICA, Friday, November 8
Laraaji began his set with a guided relaxation, urging us to loosen up our bodies from our toes up to our scalps. In front of him lay a selection of instruments, which he proceeded to pick up with the calm intent of pruning a rose garden. The whirr of cicadas and the swelling of a modular synth established an immersive backdrop as he strummed, drummed, and plucked his signature zither. Soon the unmistakable twinkle of a kalimba was heard, the instrument prominently featured on the rediscovered recordings released last year, Segue To Infinity. Famously a practitioner of “laughter meditation,” Laraaji peppered his set with chuckles as he guided us down this slow river of sound, not transporting us anywhere in particular but urging us to be fully present.
Geordie Greep - EartH Hall, Saturday, November 9
If you were unconvinced by former Black Midi frontman Geordie Greep’s debut album The New Sound, seeing it performed live will force you to reconsider your stance. Rather than spending one-on-one time with the sleazy cast of men that populate its tracklist, you can instead lose yourself to the album’s outrageous mixture of jagged samba, Brazilian tropicália, prog-jazz fusion, and unfashionable showtunes. At EartH Hall, the crowd got a chance to wince at the seedy protagonist of “Walk Up” while marveling at Greep’s dexterous guitar work and feeling the propulsive, maximalist energy of his seven-piece band.
Tierra Whack - The Roundhouse, Sunday, November 10
Philadelphia rapper Tierra Whack’s closing set for Pitchfork Festival brought out the trademark goofy, heartfelt, and idiosyncratic sides of her music. Over rib cage-rattling 808s, she delivered the rapid-fire weirdo raps from her latest album, World Wide Whack, and ran through a majority of her beloved debut, Whack World. There was a chummy atmosphere with the crowd from the outset, as she introduced us to her mom and bantered with any audience member who caught her eye. A girl in the front row begging her to play “Flea Market” got more than she bargained for as Whack dragged her onstage to duet it. (If you’re reading this, Rochelle: You did great.) So it only felt right that Tierra Whack ended the show by jumping down and performing fan favorite “Hungry Hippo” shoulder to shoulder with the crowd.
