This past Saturday night, La Roux, the monicker of the beloved dance-pop artist Elly Jackson, wrapped up her sold-out residency at intimate venues throughout Los Angeles at the historic El Cid in Silverlake. While there wasn’t the usual flamenco on this evening, the floor was sizzling with movement as longtime fans from the indie sleaze era danced their hearts out to La Roux’s iconic indie synth-pop sounds.
As the crowd trickled into the storied 200-capacity flamenco venue, 90s R&B and hip hop played throughout the venue a la Spiñorita. From Common to Ashanti, and Janet Jackson and Q-Tip — the music was full of new album “easter eggs.” That’s right, La Roux has a new album underway, and according to our pre-show interview with Elly, in three words, she described the new album as “sexy, party, and reflective.” Stay tuned for our video interview, where we talk all about Elly’s return and the new La Roux album.
In true club kid fashion, the party didn’t start until around 11 p.m. La Roux hit the stage with a crowd busting at the heels with excitement. Fans were elbow to elbow on the dance floor, and the three booths in the back were full of bouncing bums.
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La Roux enamored us with her nostalgic songs and slick dance moves. She took us back to a time when we were all a bit younger, with fewer worries and responsibilities. Now, older, those songs still feel like hitting play for the first time and falling in love with La Roux’s sound. “Tropical Chancer” had fans shimmying shoulder to shoulder, while the synth-heavy intro to “In For The Kill” had everyone screaming as though they had won the Lotto. Fan favorites “Sexotheque,” “I’m Not Your Toy,” and, of course, “Bulletproof” truly hit the joy button.
While we still don’t know how to accomplish time travel, it was nice to feel like it was 2009, and we heard “Bulletproof” for the first time. One of music’s greatest gifts is that so many songs hold a core memory of a moment in time. And when you hear that song again, especially live, it transports you to some seriously incredible memories. That’s what La Roux’s music does for me. It reminds me of the early days of this here music blog and all the fun, carefree times that came with it. Considering the last time we caught La Roux live was in 2014 at the Fonda, this intimate club show at El Cid was like a dream come true.
La Roux also performed several unreleased songs from her forthcoming new album, which has yet to be announced. The new songs included “Cabin Fever,” “Babyline,” and “Loose Myself.” All three have a throwback 90s / early ‘00s R&B sound, electro-coated in glowing synths. They’re super sexy and super vibey.
If you missed out on La Roux’s intimate club show residency in Los Angeles, don’t worry; she’ll be back to tour her new album. But in the meantime, you can catch her live up next in New York, Paris and London.
Stay tuned for a Grimy Goods exclusive video interview with Elly Jackson, aka La Roux! We’ll publish it here, on our Instagram and YouTube, this week.
Words: Sandra Burciaga
Photography: Bryan Olinger
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