Poppy is something of an enigmatic figure. Starting out as a semi-fictional internet personality designed to unnerve and confuse, the star soon branched out into music with her debut EP, Bubblebath, back in 2016 under her former stage name That Poppy. Fast forward to now, and her musical trajectory has been just as unpredictable and confusing as her character. Having shed most of her bubblegum pop aesthetics in favour of a darker metal sound is a shift in style that I never expected, and one that felt awfully serendipitous being (primarily) a metal fan who quite enjoyed her early work. A semblance of her former style remains in elements of her music (namely the bright choruses and generally bubbly vocal delivery), but make no mistake – Poppy’s music is heavy, and it’s only getting heavier.
We’re now over a year into the pandemic, and while we seem to be slowly but surely on our way out, the trend of livestream concerts in the absence of in-person live music has been a welcome distraction. With The Last Disagreement, Poppy has joined the ranks of the many artists putting on these concerts for those at home, reeling for a taste of live music. The show truly impressed, running just short of an hour in length and covering almost all of her more rock-oriented music from her Am I A Girl? era onwards.
The show opened with her heavy and typically whiplash-inducing genre-bent album opener “Concrete,” fitted out with an extended breakdown at the end to satiate those at home itching to throw some hands in a pit – don’t worry, I’m right there with you. Extended outros were a running theme throughout the show, with both “Scary Mask” and closing number and album title track “I Disagree” receiving the same treatment. The moshable tunes kept coming, with metalcore-tinged rager “Bite Your Teeth” coming close to the end of the set, being one of the heaviest tunes Poppy has made to date.
Mid-set, Poppy made an unexpected turn, bringing out her amped-up cover of t.A.T.u’s “All The Things She Said.” It’s a truly fantastic version of the iconic track, and one that translates surprisingly well live for a cover. The higher-octane style of the live version here definitely adds to the experience, but while it was relatively one of the softer songs in the set (bar the two slower songs from I Disagree), it fit right in as an unexpected curveball.
The visuals on display here were something to behold too; with a beautifully lit stage set, full costumes for all the band members, and a fantastic level of animation and stage presence from Poppy herself. She has quite the commanding presence on stage, one that really draws your eye in and keeps your attention.
However, it wasn’t all perfect.
The absence of any of the new Poppy tunes (namely “Eat” and “Say Cheese,” premiering at the Grammy’s and on WWE’s NXT respectively) was a little disappointing. But there’s more than enough content here to bite your teeth to despite that. It would’ve also been nice to see Poppy show off some more of the aggressive screaming she’s been showcasing in her performances recently, and while that wasn’t entirely absent from the show (with Poppy actually laying down some pretty gnarly screams and vocal swells), it would have been more than welcome to see her really going for it on some of her back catalogue.
As it stands, though, The Last Disagreement held some stellar live performances of the very best of Poppy’s musical output over the past couple of years. With all of I Disagree, quite a few tracks off Am I A Girl? and some scattered extras here and there, there was a sizeable breadth of solid content here for the $20 price tag. Now, can we get back to actual live music soon, please?
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