REVIEW: French Indie-Electro Artist Oklou Brings the Heat to Brussels
REVIEW
REVIEW
☆ BY IVONA HOMICIANU ☆
OKLOU HAS BEEN MAKING WAVES IN INDIE CIRCLES—Since the release of her acclaimed album choke enough last year, the artist has seen a bloom in her career. She embarked on her summer tour earlier this month with a stop at Ancienne Belgique, a venue in the center of Brussels, Belgium. Despite the heatwave, everyone showed up for the sold out headline show to support one of the most unique sonic artists of this generation.
Oklou is an indie artist from France who released her first mixtape Galore in 2020, though she’s been in the music industry for longer. Her album choke enough mixes soft vocals with minimalist electro-pop beats, as well as nostalgic songwriting.
On first impression, the stage design is what caught my attention. It was simple with an elevated stage, a swing and lights that hung over the stage. She utilized the space to her best. She began by sitting down in the middle of the elevated stage, playing a lit-up-from-the-inside flute in a serene introduction to her show.
On the second track, “thank you for recording,” she walked around the stage as a camera followed her and projected the image onto the screen. The visuals were in constant shades of blue, green and orange, creating an atmosphere that mirrored her album aesthetics. The use of lights was intentional and creative, tailored to each song on the setlist to maximize the emotion.
Whether the focus was on the darkness with only a light showing Oklou’s face, or the artist herself holding a flashlight up to the crowd to see faces, it further enhanced the explosion of light that would envelop the crowd during choruses and bridges. It danced on the line of grandiose and intimate, with the sonic sphere making the crowd move even on the slowest songs.
Oklou’s talent as a multi-instrumentalist stood out throughout the show. From playing the flute, to constantly sitting down in front of her synth and even playing an acoustic guitar at the end, she showed her involvement in her artistry also lies in the production process. What was also remarkable was how each one of her instruments had a light on the inside, a slight touch that enforced her status as a unique artist. Her soft vocals that accompanied us through the night were notable. The performance could rival the studio recordings.
The sound cohesiveness made the transitions smooth, though there were two songs that stood out. “harvest sky,” preceded by a spoken word, turned the venue into a rave ground for a moment, with each person letting loose during what can be argued as her most electronic track. “dance 2” had one of the cutest set-ups, with her team on stage making different hearts out of their hands in the face of the camera, after which it was reversed to the crowd who mimicked their gesture through the song as Oklou swung on stage.
Her title track “choke enough” saw expansive visuals and high-paced beats, which transitioned into “ict” as the crowd cheered loudly. The ingenious transition caused the energy to soar, ending with thunderous applause and cheers as we waited for Oklou to come back on stage for the encore.
Ending the show with “blade bird,” the closing track on the album, was a wise decision to get the crowd to sing along. She sat down on the stage with her acoustic guitar, looking out into the audience as she performed the love song. Overall, the show was wholesome as it highlighted the human connection that forms when an artist’s songs hit the right chords.
