Conan Gray delivered a captivating hometown show to Austin’s Moody Center, blending raw emotion with infectious pop energy for an unforgettable performance.
Conan Gray is an indie-pop artist from Georgetown, TX, 30 miles north of Austin City. As a teenager he made YouTube videos. He slowly built a following by sharing his life and art with the world. After high school, Conan was accepted into UCLA to study filmmaking but dropped out to tour after being signed to Republic Records. In 2017, he released his debut self-released single, “Idle Town.” Only a year later he released his debut EP, Sunset Season, which peaked at #2 on the Billboard Heatseekers Albums chart. Soon enough, he was playing live on late-night talk shows. His most recent album, Found Heaven, was released in January. The 80s sound and aesthetic of the album gave fans something new to be excited about.
English singer-songwriter, Maisie Peters, opened for Conan in Austin. Maisie started writing songs when she was 12 years old. Similar to Conan, she started out as a YouTuber before finding success in the music industry. Maisie has opened for Ed Sheeran, Coldplay, and even Taylor Swift. Her most recent release was her third full-length album, The Good Witch (2023). She opened her set with “You’re Just a Boy (And I’m Kinda the Man)” from her latest album. Mid-set she performed a cover of Bonnie Tyler’s “Holding Out for a Hero,” which went extremely well based on the reaction of the crowd. She played a few more songs from The Good Witch before closing with “Lost the Breakup.”
Like a phoenix, Conan Gray rose from the depths of the stage as the arena roared to life. He started the night with “Fainted Love.” He followed it with “Never Ending Story.” The glam-pop vibe of this new album changed the whole experience of Conan Gray’s show compared to pre-Found Heaven. This new album was made to perform live. Afterward, he played one of his older songs “Wish You Were Sober” from Kid Krow (2020). Even if you didn’t know any of Conan Gray’s songs, it wouldn’t be hard to hear the growth his music has seen even within the last 5 years. He went on to play a few more songs from his new album. Of course, he couldn’t only play the new ones, so he threw it back and performed some fan favorites from Superache, such as “People Watching” and “Jigsaw.”After a little over an hour of cracking jokes and singing his heart out, he left the stage only to come back a few minutes later for an encore. The encore consisted of “Bourgeoisieses,” “Maniac,” and “Alley Rose.” At the end of “Alley Rose,” a cannon went off, sending confetti flying across the pit. Conan Gray found his style nestled between Elton John and an 80s disco. He successfully brought back a neglected genre and doesn’t seem a bit out of place doing it. If anyone is going to sell glam pop in 2024, it’s Conan Gray, effortlessly.
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