LIVE REVIEW + PHOTOS: JAPANESE BREAKFAST AT THE O2 ACADEMY BRIXTON, LONDON 03/07/25
Full photo gallery here
After spending the past year in South Korea honing her Korean language skills and working on her second book, Michelle Zauner - better known as Japanese Breakfast - has returned with a brand new album, For Melancholy Brunettes (& sad women). Tonight, she brought her Melancholy Tour to the O2 Academy Brixton in London. Despite its somber name, the show’s atmosphere was anything but sad - Fans were visibly ecstatic, dancing nonstop for the full hour and twenty-minute set.
Opening the evening was South Korean singer-songwriter Minhwi Lee, who delivered a spellbinding, experimental performance on keyboard, accompanied by guitarist Sagong. The pair played an entrancing 40-minute set of delicate, stripped-down songs. The final track was so hushed and intimate that Minhwi gently asked the audience to quiet down, inviting them to fully immerse themselves in the closing moments of her performance.
Michelle Zauner opened her set with the first three tracks from her latest album, For Melancholy Brunettes (& sad women) - ‘Here is Someone’, ‘Orlando in Love’ and ‘Honey Water’ - released earlier this year on 21 March. She stepped on stage wearing a large knitted bow, which she quickly lost in the excitement of the moment. The energy spiked during ‘Road Head’, a clear fan favourite, as the crowd erupted the moment the opening notes rang out.
Next came ‘Boyish’, a beloved track from Soft Sounds From Another Planet, originally performed by Zauner’s former band, Little Big League. It was a communal moment, with nearly everyone in the room singing along. After a few more songs, Zauner took a seat between her keyboardist and drummer to perform ‘Men in Bars’, a poignant track featuring Jeff Bridges - his parts tenderly sung by her drummer. She followed with ‘Glider’, a piece she wrote for the video game Sable, dedicating it to the game’s creators, who were in attendance that night.
The energy soared as she launched into the upbeat ‘Picture Window’, an electrifying performance punctuated by lights flashing in perfect sync with the music. She moved closer to the crowd for ‘Slide Tackle’, creating an intimate moment as she sang with her fans, the song highlighted by a stunning saxophone solo that had the entire audience jumping by the end.
Next came a captivating rendition with powerful vocals of ‘The Woman That Loves You’ before announcing a special moment: the live debut of a new track, ‘My Baby (Got Nothing At All)’, written for the film Materialists. She shared that it was her first time composing for a movie - a venture that clearly paid off, judging by the crowd’s enthusiastic response.
Closing out the main set with ‘Posing in Bondage’, she unleashed a powerful performance bathed in flashing green lights, creating a dramatic end to the set.
The encore featured three final songs. First came ‘Paprika’, a vibrant performance where she struck her gong in rhythm throughout, followed by the irresistible ‘Be Sweet’, a crowd favourite that had everyone - even those in the balconies - on their feet dancing. She wrapped up this unforgettable night with the emotional and powerful ‘Diving Woman’, bidding a heartfelt goodbye.
Words and photos by Eva Grant
Full setlist:
Here Is Someone
Orlando in Love
Honey Water
Road Head
Boyish
The Body is a Blade
Mega Circuit
Men in Bars
Glider
Picture Window
Slide Tackle
The Woman That Loves You
My Baby (Got Nothing at All)
Winter in LA
Kokomo, in
Till Death
Magic Mountain
Posing in Bondage
Paprika
Be Sweet
Diving Woman