Lauren Mayberry review: ‘The ultimate powerhouse on stage’

Mayberry’s impressive performance was complemented by the singer’s comedic wit. Throughout the evening, the 37-year-old made numerous quips that included comments on the show’s production values, responding to a fan who professed his love for the singer by joking she always thinks those remarks come from her mother, technical difficulties with the mic stand, being “powerless” over Manchester’s food scene, questioning the logic behind walking off stage for an encore and joking about “Scottish timekeeping” and ordering noodles as the reason behind the delayed start to the set.

With just 13 tracks performed, Mayberry’s set was succinct and didn’t feature anything from CHVRCHES’ catalogue. However, despite the likes of ‘The Mother We Share’ and ‘Clearest Blue’ missing out, the set didn’t lack quality, as ‘Vicious Creature’ was performed in its entirety, and the spotlight was entirely on Mayberry and her new sound.

Launching into a stomping rendition of ‘Crocodile Tears’ to open, Mayberry arrived on stage yielding a pro old-school telephone on a track with a disco-friendly beat and a pumping bass. A performance of the catchy, bass-driven and Sugababes-esque ‘Changing Shapes’ was delivered with a reflective tone by Mayberry on a track that touches on themes of gender roles, followed before you can’t help but watch the trance-inducing art-pop track ‘Mantra’ with widened eyes.

As the night unfolded, the infectious ‘Punch Drunk’ is a dance-inducing, dance-rock anthem that packs… A punch in a live setting, a piano-led cover of The Verve’s ‘Bitter Sweet Symphony’ erupts with a burst of a pounding drum line and a fuzzy guitar; an acoustic-led ballad of ‘Anywhere but Dancing’ is a nice change-up, and a megaphone with a flashlight is brought out for a rendition of the 90s-sounding ‘Something in the Air’, where Mayberry’s soprano voice stands out.

The punchy punk-infused ‘Sorry, Etc’ provides an injection of pace before the encore and is a perfect example of the eclectic approach taken on ‘Vicious Creature’, which draws on influences from Alanis Morissette, Tori Amos, Sinead O’Connor, Madonna, St. Vincent and Fiona Apple, to name a few.

After returning to the stage for the encore, Mayberry launched into a piano-led rendition of the emotive ‘Oh, Mother’ before striking a reflective tone. The 37-year-old reminisced about her memories of Manchester and recalled spending two weeks in the city when opening for Coldplay back in 2023 before an exhilaratingly upbeat rendition of ‘Sunday’s Best’ closed out the night. As the 37-year-old exited the stage, it is without question that whether she is fronting for CHVRCHES or on her own, Mayberry is the ultimate powerhouse on stage in a performance that perfectly showcased her talent and comedic wit.