Following the release of her debut album “Clean,” Soccer Mommy showed her Austin fans that her music is worth the hype.
Story by Ryan Wellman
Photos by Veronica Briones
On the night of Friday the 13th, a small line formed outside of Stubb’s Bar-B-Q as patrons dined inside. When the clock struck 9:00 p.m.m the bouncers let in the line of mostly 20- somethings into the venue. The atmosphere was relaxed as fans filled the bar and chatted about their expectations for the night, having never seen the acts live before.
Once the venue was relatively full, opening act Madeline Kenney took the stage. Some chatting still continued throughout the bar as Kenney played through her first few songs. As the drums for her song “Signals” began to play, all attention turned toward the stage. Kenney’s powerful vocals shined through and she shouted into the mic about her experiences with unrequited love.
As Kenney continued through her set the crowd gave her their undivided attention. Her music became more diverse as she began sampling different audio clips and layering her voice to harmonize with herself. As she left the stage, she proved to the audience that her music was something that shouldn’t be ignored.
After a few minutes of adjusting and tuning instruments, Soccer Mommy began to play. Fans in the balcony blew down bubbles onto the stage as lead singer, Sophie Allison, began with crowd favorites “Henry” and “Try” from her 2017 release “Collection” and the audience sang along to each word. Following those songs, Allison remarked on the release of her debut album “Clean” and her shows at South by Southwest. Moving along, she played songs from “Clean” and the audience was psyched to hear all of the new music live.
Crowd favorites included anthems “Your Dog” and “Cool,” both featuring fun, edgy choruses that challenge dated patriarchal ideals. When taking another short break, Allison reflected on one of Soccer Mommy’s recent visits to Austin in when they toured in a small subaru. She joked that since they are touring in a van now, the band had reached actual soccer mom status.
After playing a few more songs from “Clean” including the heart wrenching “Scorpio Rising” as well as an evocative cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “I’m on Fire,” the band left the stage and the fans immediately called for an encore, impatient to hear more music. Allison came back to the mic on her own and sang “Waiting for Cars.”
The crowd was mystified by her final song of the night, as it felt like they were peering in on a private moment when Allison was recalling the turmoils of a past lover. With her powerful and catchy songwriting, Allison’s music feels familiar and each fan in the room held her songs close to their hearts, making it a truly special and intimate night with Soccer Mommy.
