Re:SET (Day 2) – Forest Hills Stadium – New York (A PopEntertainment.com Concert Review)

Boygenius, Clairo, Dijon & Bartees Strange – Re:SET (Day 2) – Forest Hills Stadium – New York, NY – June 17, 2023

Re:SET made its debut this year as a three-day, 12-city traveling concert series with headliners each day’s headliners including boygenius, LCD Soundsystem and Steve Lacy.

Kicking off Day two of the festival was Bartees Strange. He opened his set with a full band, playing songs like “Mulholland Dr.,” “About Today” (a cover from the band The National), and ending his set with the ever-so-electric “Boomer.” It was the perfect way to start the day.

The second performer of the day was Dijon. His set included songs like “Big Mike’s” “Rodeo Clown” and “The Dress” (one of my personal favorites from his 2021 album Absolutely). A passionate performer from start to finish, Dijon captivated the crowd with his soulful voice.

Next up was Clairo who played songs ranging from her very first EP, “diary 001” to her sophomore album, Sling. The wind and rain started to pick up halfway through Clairo’s set, but who wouldn’t want to dance to “Softly” in the rain. She didn’t miss a beat and neither did the audience. Ending her set with a song that has proven itself to be timeless even 4 years after its release (and very fitting for the month of June) “Bags” rang through the stadium, the sun was back out, and if you weren’t singing along before this, you certainly were now.

Before boygenius took the stage, Tecumseh Ceaser, a member of the Matinecock Turkey clan, welcomed us onto Matinecock territory through a land acknowledgment and song.

The crowd was buzzing and soon enough “The Boys Are Back In Town” blared through the speakers, which meant it was time for supergroup boygenius to take the stage. Beginning their set backstage with a camera pointed at them, the audience watched through the big screen on stage as popular singers and songwriters Lucy Dacus, Phoebe Bridgers, and Julien Baker sang “Without You Without Them” in perfect harmony.

The trio made their way to the stage with the “$20” intro playing, fans were waving $20 bills in the air and the show was in full swing. Tears were shed, screams were loud and the fans that had waited hours and hours in line before the show did not hold back.

They played fan favorites from their self-titled debut EP such as “Ketchum, ID” and “Me & My Dog,” songs from their latest album the record, and even an unreleased song called “Boyfriends” which naturally they dedicated to all the boyfriends in the crowd. Each member played a song from their own popular discographies as solo artists with the help of their bandmates. Fans sang along to Phoebe’s “Graceland Too,” Julien’s “Favor,” and Lucy’s “Please Stay.”

There’s something about singing “always an angel, never a god” with thousands of other people that makes you feel like you’re on top of the world. Although Re:SET 2023 has come to an end, boygenius will be on the road in July and August and if they’re coming to a city near you, I would highly recommend checking them out this summer.

Here’s to hoping Re:SET makes a return in 2024!

Ruth Bekele