Ellie Goulding at Madison Square Garden

Last week the North American leg of the Delirium World Tour ended with Ellie Goulding at Madison Square Garden (MSG)! I saw Ellie during her Halcyon Days tour back in 2014 which was also at MSG but in the smaller Theater section.

Ellie’s career has gotten even bigger since then. It’s always cool to see an artist you like and admire gain more traction and reach new heights. She has such a unique voice and I love the storytelling in her songs.

If I’m honest, Delirium was a record that grew on me. I didn’t instantly love it the way that I did with Halcyon or Lights. I’m not certain what made it click for me but there were a few moments on the record that at first gave me pause.

Thankfully by the third listen I was all about it! I had grown accustomed to the sounds from her previous work and wasn’t expecting the more worldly and at times experimental sounds on this album. Like most fans, I went into the first listen of Delirium with all these expectations. When I realized that this was going in a different direction it didn’t take long for me to hop on board.

Do I like every song now? No. There are still maybe 2-3 tracks that aren’t for me but that’s nothing once you realize the album has a total of 22 songs (deluxe edition). One of my least liked songs made it to her set list for the night and although it didn’t win me over I did have a greater sense of its placement on the album.

Opener Switch

If you’ve noticed the few times that I’ve mentioned my coverage of Ellie Goulding at Madison Square Garden then you’ll know that I’ve also mentioned Years & Years. Unfortunately, when I arrived I found out that they had to cancel due to lead singer Olly Alexander having medical issues.

The band cancelled multiple shows on Ellie’s North American tour and I just missed the memo. Matt & Kim replaced them and I was a bit deflated. I saw them at a festival in Brooklyn back when I was in high school but it took a while to adjust to the fact that Years & Years wasn’t performing.

If you’ve been following me for long then you know I’m borderline obsessed with Years & Years. The fact that they weren’t performing didn’t ruin my time but now I’m just determined to see them again.

Years & Years Live Coverage

LPR || Terminal 5

The Stage & Production

As I mentioned before, I saw Ellie perform once before. The difference in seeing the show then versus now was a pretty big one. Not only was the venue larger but the whole stage design was on a grander scale. There were more costume changes, bigger screens, backup dancers, seemingly more props and an overall bigger production.

The first time I saw her I felt like I was watching someone who was on the rise. This time, as I watched Ellie Goulding at Madison Square Garden it was clear that she had come into her own. I’m sure being able to fill up an iconic arena like MSG is a surefire way to build confidence.

The show began with the “Intro (Delirium)” and “Aftertaste” tracks and the corresponding visuals did a fantastic job of getting you excited for what’s to come.

I loved the unique song mashups that played during her quick costume changes. At one point she wore this killer leather jacket that you can somewhat see in the below clip. If you happen to know who designs that bit of goodness please let me know!

A video posted by Monika || Artist & Writer (@violetroots) on Jun 21, 2016 at 8:20pm PDT

“Lights” & The States

During the show Ellie mentioned that her hit song “Lights” doesn’t get much of a response outside of the states. To use her exact words she said that performing it can be “awks” haha. I thought that was pretty crazy since that was her big breakthrough hit here.

I was aware of her music for a few years before that single started to get radio play but I’d be interested to know more. Since some of you are from outside of America let me know if you either don’t know that song or just aren’t that crazy about it. If you’re unaware of it check it out here!

Live

For this week’s playlist, I’ve decided to bring you to the Delirium World Tour! Most of the songs are live footage from the tour and all of them are tracks from the Delirium album.