PHASES fills Saturn with 80’s vibes
Strutting onto the stage in high waisted shorts and a nylon jumpsuit, Z-Berg, the front-woman of pop-band PHASES was ready to amp up the Avondale venue’s energy with her Debbie Harry like image and stage presence. “What’s up Birmingham,” she said, shouting to the audience as synths echoed behind her.
The 80’s inspired band stopped by Birmingham on Tuesday night to open for BORNS, a psychedelic-alt-pop band with a increasingly large following due to their success of the single “Electric Love.”
While the audience may not have come to the show to exclusively see PHASES play, the band did not let this show. In “Running Away,” Z showed her promised dance moves [see Kscope’s interview] through perfectly syncopated steps and kicks while hitting the keys of the keyboard.
After Z confided to the audience that she found them as a “delightful bunch of rowdy people,” the group performed their biggest hit, “I’m In Love With My Life,” as their third song, a surprising pick—I thought this would be their closing anthem.
After the energizing anthem, the crowd began to warm up to PHASES and Z asked for everyone to hold up their flashlights x phones for the song, “Sparks.” With the colorful stage lights gone, the mood darkened, making the emotional song feel a little rawer. The song’s building synths and twinkling keyboard, paired with the soaring vocals, made the performance very reminiscent of Cyndi Lauper and her classic “Time After Time.”
Ending on an equally peppy-strong note, the band closed with “Cooler,” a Bananarama infused breakup ballad, that had much of the PHASES-virgin crowd dancing 80’s prom style, enjoying the unexpected treat before BORNS came on.
Overall, PHASES proved to an energizing opener and set the alt-pop mood for the night. If they stop by Birmingham again, I’d definitely look into seeing them.
