Lorde released her fourth album today. There was also a ‘TBA’ slot on the Glastonbury lineup today, and Lorde said in an interview that she would “see if [she could] pull some strings and get there”. To the shock of absolutely nobody that was paying attention then, Lorde took to the Woodsies stage at half eleven in the morning, treating festivalgoers to the first post-release live taste of ‘Virgin’ – the verdict? Glastonbury sure does have a lot of Lorde fans. Oh, and the set was great, too.
Seriously though fwiw, if you’re going to host a secret set from a headline-level artist who’s just released an album, don’t put it in a tent. By the time we arrive, it’s a struggle to see the big top itself, let alone wrestle our way inside so we can hear and see what’s going on. It’s worth it though, with Lorde distilling her set into 45 minutes of pure joy. Opening with ‘Hammer’ and ‘What Was That’, She seems as excited as the crowd are, grinning and dancing her way through the new material.
And it’s all new material, running through the newborn album in full. Without her standard set of old classics and new material, its up to Lorde herself to keep the energy up, but she doesn’t seem to have an issue with this, flashing a silver bikini and pumping the air with her fist. By the time she plays ‘Man of the Year’ she’s doing yoga moves on the stage floor, somehow not missing a note even while horizontal. In case impromptu Yoga with Adrienne wasn’t enough, ‘Ribs’ and ‘Green Light’ get an airing at the very end, leaving the entire field singing the words long after the end of the set.
Nobody needed convincing that Lorde could (and should) headline Glastonbury at some point soon, but with today’s performance, we’ll be practically picketing Worthy Farm if she’s not at the top of 2027’s billing.
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