Kim Petras Concert Review: An Outstandingly Rowdy, Slightly Uneven Rave

Kim Petras is no stranger to risqué music. And on Oct. 7, Petras brought her infectious persona in all its raunchy glory to Boston’s MGM Music Hall at Fenway as a part of her ‘Feed the Beast’ World Tour. Providing a swarm of enthusiastic fans with a healthy serving of some of her biggest hits, such as “Slut Pop,” the Nicki Minaj collab “Alone,” and “King of Hearts,” Petras showcased her vocal talent in a show that was extremely enjoyable despite its uneven nature.

The first, and most memorable, strength of Petras’s concert were her powerful, crystal clear vocals. Perhaps owing to the production-heavy, club-style nature of Petras’s music, it can be all too easy to discount her voice and attribute the success of her songs to well-engineered beats. But this misconception was quickly dispelled by Petras’s ability to hit impressively high notes and beautiful riffs throughout the entire concert. “Hillside Boys,” an early classic of the singer’s canon, was a particularly strong moment in the concert, as Petras was able to build to the song’s catchy crescendo with ease and add vocal flares along the way that made her live version even more enjoyable than its recorded counterpart.

By Brady M. Connolly

Along with including some of her earliest songs in the show’s setlist, Petras made an effort to highlight well-known singles and deep cuts from across her wide discography. Proving her immense love and appreciation for her fans that she expressed many times throughout the show, the singer turned what could have been a brief, one-album tour into a lengthy showcase of all her many eras. Petras accomplished this feat by splitting the show up into distinct acts, each of which was primarily comprised of songs from one of her EPs or “Feed the Beast,” her debut album. The “Slut Pop” act came early on in the show and was perhaps the most cohesive segment of the show, with each song perfectly blending into the next and causing the energy of the general admission dance floor to skyrocket.

Rivaling the “Slut Pop” act for the most high-spirited moment of the night was Petras’s encore, which included “Alone,” “Problématique,” the title track of her Sept. 18 surprise release, and “Heart to Break.” By turning the encore into a kind of mini-act, Petras had ample time to thank the audience for their enthusiasm and bring her almost two-hour long show to a high-octane, rainbow-decorated finish. Even though “Problématique” was released less than a month before the show, fans sang along with just as much fervor as Petras’s older hits — a sure sign of the singer’s star power.

Immersing the audience in a display of striking lighting, the show began with a production design mirroring Petras’s infectious energy, combining a captivating moment of Petras emerging from an egg with a direct nod to the name of the tour with Petras coming out singing, and swinging a sword, to “Feed the Beast.” While Petras made a notably energetic impression in her entrance, the stage elements in her later songs failed to forge a comparable effect. With the start of the concert featuring engaging props forming an electric stage display, the show clearly relied too heavily on the psychedelic clips playing on screens behind Petras for the latter half of the show. These distracting, confusing displays, although seemingly providing a vibrant illustration of Petras’s creativity, inadvertently took away from the few dancers on stage.

By Brady M. Connolly

Although relevant to the nature of an October concert, Petras further exacerbated this feeling of an underwhelming show during her performance of Halloween-themed mixtape “Turn Off the Light.” As one of her less popular albums, it was unusual to see the heavy focus of these songs during the show. By focusing on this mixtape for six full songs, the audience seemed to lose the electric energy they maintained throughout the first half of the concert along with Petras. The venue then felt stuck listening to a less-engaging set of songs, and the notable lack of dancers and disinteresting stage elements that came along with them. Simply put, this uneven distribution of songs made this part of the concert both disappointing and forgetful.

From maintaining stunning vocals to highlighting the breadth of her discography, however, Petras’s strengths on stage surpass the downfalls of the show. Petras, with her compelling stage presence, forges her own irresistibly unique and memorable persona — ensuring that later shows will be equally as delighted with the electric energy of the pop icon.

—Staff writer Monique I. Vobecky can be reached at monique.vobecky@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @moniquevobecky. Staff writer Brady M. Connolly can be reached at brady.connolly@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @bradyconnolly44.