I showed up about an hour before her set and watched one of her openers — Squirrel Flower. I’m not here to review Squirrel Flower, but damn, they blew me away. The lead singer has a voice similar to Julien Baker’s, which made them the perfect opening act.

Finally, the lights dimmed, and Julien Baker casually walked on stage in her all-black outfit. She’s a tiny woman, but she is full of passion, which was apparent from the very first song.

Soft white lights beamed down on her as dark blue lights set the perfect backdrop for her slow, mellow songs. Her music is so mellow and quiet that you could hear pretty much everything that was going on in the audience — knuckles cracking, people flipping through programs, the clicks of a camera every time a picture was taken.

It was relaxing, though, to see a set like this. Honestly, Baker could put me to sleep — and that’s saying a lot, and I mean that in the best way possible. Her voice is so soothing, her guitar and piano work so smooth, and the softness in her music just makes me want to curl up and drift away. It’s very atmospheric, which I love so much.

At one point, she had a violinist join her for a couple songs, and w.o.w. it was amazing. The violin added so much dimension to her songs, so much that it almost made me regret taking up the clarinet and not the violin in middle school.

Baker switched between her electric guitar, acoustic guitar, and piano. Honestly, she’s so talented — normally I don’t see many artists switch it up that many times in a show.

One of the things I loved most were the mistakes she made — for example, she hit the mic stand with her guitar, took a step back, and bowed. It was so refreshing to see that she’s just a normal person like you and me. Which tbh, she kinda is — she’s only like a year older than me. Her sense of humor during that was one of the highlights of the night.

After singing a slow and mellow song, she would softly say “Thank you,” into the microphone.

Sprained Ankle by Julien Baker.

Baker is a singer/songwriter from Tennessee, and she released her debut album in 2015 called “Sprained Ankle” on Bandcamp. Her most recent LP, “Turn Out The Lights,” just came out in 2017. Her music is the perfect music to chill to, vibe to, cry to, study to, etc.

The night soon wrapped up, and Baker walked off the stage just as casually as she came on. I’ve been to a lot of Mission Creek shows, so believe me when I say that this was one of the best.

The post Mission Creek Festival: Julien Baker @ The Englert Theatre 4/7/18 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

It includes music, literature, performances, and many more. Honestly, I’m pretty stoked for it this year for many reasons, but today I’m gonna focus on one artist that I’m truly hyped to see: Julien Baker.

Julien Baker is a singer/songwriter from Tennessee, pulling listeners in with her smooth slowcore, indie rock/folk style of music.

There isn’t much production to her music — it’s just her stunning voice and her guitar.

If you’re looking for some chill music to listen to, you should definitely check out Julien Baker.

Now if you regularly read any of my articles, then you will know that I loooovveeee pop punk music and punk shows.

But I also love chill, vibey acoustic music, so I think this will be a show that you won’t want to miss.

You can catch her at Gabe’s on Saturday, April 7th at 10:30 p.m. Don’t forget to check out Squirrel Flowers at 9 p.m. as well.

Back to Baker — can I just say how much I admire her? She’s only a year older than I am and I feel like she has accomplished so much.

During her freshman year of college, she self-released her first album on Bandcamp in winter of 2014, which then became her first studio album “Sprained Ankle” in October 2015.

She followed up with her LP “Turn Out The Lights” in 2017, with help from Sorority Noise’s lead singer Cameron Boucher (!!!). What I love about it is that it feels so raw, and it tells a story of vulnerability and resilience.

TBH, it’s the perfect music to chill to, study to, vibe to, cry, etc. I honestly can’t wait to see her live because I want to see that raw emotion in person.

I mean, just watch this episode of NPR Music’s Tiny Desk Concert and try not to cry. Lmk how that goes.

Make sure to check out Julien Baker at Gabe’s on April 7th, and while you’re at it, head on over to missioncreekfestival.com to check out some other cool artists who will be making an apperance!

The post Mission Creek Festival Promo: Julien Baker appeared first on KRUI Radio.