This past Friday, I had the opportunity to finally see Peter McPoland perform live in Atlanta. My cousin and I went together, as she is a major fan and introduced me to him and his music a few years back. The drive into Atlanta was an experience in itself; we are both small-town girls. Still, we were blasting the set list the whole way there. The two of us decided to match with our concert outfits, wearing red and white striped shirts as a nod to his music video for “Ceiling Fan/Piggy”. The concert took place at Variety Playhouse, in the center of Atlanta’s Little Five Points. This was a smaller venue, smaller than any I have been to before, so the whole show felt a lot more intimate and alive. We purchased the VIP tickets as well, which ended up being so worth it. With this pass, we had the opportunity to speak to Peter before the show, as well hear some songs he had selected to perform to us privately. Being at the back of the line, we had some time to talk to a few of the other concert goers. One girl we spoke to had also been listening for a while, since 2019, and appreciated our outfit choices. Soon enough, it was our turn to speak with him and to say we were nervous would be an understatement. However, Peter was just as friendly and attentive as we were expecting, and he took the time to speak with us and take a few photos. Naturally, I had to ask him to make a little promotion video for mine and DJ Iris’s show here at WUSC, and he delivered. Go check it out on our Instagram @thegallerywusc! For the bonus songs, Peter played an acoustic version “I Love You Too” as well as an unreleased song.
The show's opening performance was DUG, a two-man band from Ireland. They were a great start to the concert, bringing a lot of energy to the crowd. For instance, focusing more on a folk sound, their songs all had consistent beats which brought us all to clap and stomp our feet. After they wrapped up, soon enough, we were waiting for Peter to come out. The rest of the room had filled up by now, everyone eagerly waiting. Then, about half an hour later, from behind the curtain he appeared, alongside three of his hometown friends. They quickly started the first song of the set, “What Do You Do To Me?”, from his most recent album Big Lucky. The vibes were immediately there, and we all sang along as he went through his perfectly curated setlist. Some songs, specifically from his Piggy album such as “Digital Silence” and “Blue”, have a much more alternative-rock sound and had everyone engaged. Other songs were softer sounding, with more indie-pop themes like one of my favorites, “Speed of the Sound (of you)”, as well as “Romeo & Juliet”. At one point, he even ended up right in front of us to play “String Lights” on the keyboard. The lighting and sound of the show itself were also done very well. While it would often get a little loud, it wasn’t anything I wasn’t there for. However, for “String Lights”, Peter was originally going to be joined by his friends with the guitar and drums, but he decided to play it alone due to him not being able to hear! He joked with us all, saying this was because of his “small ears”. To wrap up the show, he and his friends harmonized to a cover of the song “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”, becoming one of the highlights of the night, in my opinion.
Overall, this concert exceeded all of my expectations. Only being my third concert ever, I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect, but I now know that I will have to see him live again in the future. Not only was he engaging with the crowd between, even during, each song, but Peter sounded just as good live as he does on his albums. To any fans of his who are debating seeing him in concert, it was an incredible night full of good music and great fun, and I couldn’t recommend it more. And to quote a song of his, I want to ask you, “Were You There?”.