Live Recap: Katie Gavin with Lucy Dacus at The Chicago Theatre
Singer-songwriter and 1/3 of the band MUNA Katie Gavin warmed up the stage for two sold-out nights with Lucy Dacus at the iconic Chicago Theatre on May 1st and 2nd—and I was lucky enough to attend for the second show on Friday night.
Gavin debuted her side-project last year, releasing the acoustic-driven solo album entitled What A Relief in October 2024. The record leans alt-country at times, particularly on tracks like “Inconsolable” and “The Baton” that feature Gavin on violin and pulls out a slight twang on her vocals. This collection of songs on the debut album showcases a tonal shift from MUNA’s usual vibe, but Gavin has said in an interview that shift was driven from the origin of these songs; throughout the years she’s written some material that the band ultimately decided wasn’t a fit with MUNA’s vision.
During the show on Friday night, Gavin told the crowd “This is the last tour that I’m gonna do for this solo record.” When her statement was met with audible disappointment from the audience, Katie added, “No, but you’re not upset because that means I’m going back into MUNA!” The upset immediately turned into excited cheers at the tease of MUNA’s return, but it felt special to get to catch one of the last shows for What A Relief . Another special moment of Gavin’s set included an appearance from her younger sister, who joined the band to play some cowbell for the duration of “Sanitized.” In addition to the cowbell, Gavin brought these stories to the stage playing the keyboard, guitar, and live violin on the aforementioned tracks “Inconsolable” and “The Baton,” the latter of which also featured a full crowd clap-along to the beat.
Towards the end of her set, Gavin slowed things down with the mellowed-out “Sketches,” which she introduced by sharing the song’s inspiration. “This song is a little bit of an exploration of that thing that maybe is love but maybe is addiction and kind of noticing that there’s certain relationships in your life that you can really grow and bloom with, and sometimes your life gets smaller. This song is about one of those times,” Katie said.
Katie Gavin’s performance wrapped up with her single “Aftertaste” and her wishing Lucy Dacus a very happy birthday. Check out photos of the show below, and catch the last few tour dates for Katie’s solo project here.
