LØLØ (Toronto, ON), Caroline Romano (Nashville, TN), Dawson Gamble (Toronto, ON)
September 25th, 2026
Amsterdam Bar & Hall in St. Paul, MN
I’ve become more selective with the shows I attend and shoot over the years. I usually like to joke that it’s because I’m getting old, but a good part of it is I just want to shoot the bands and artists I love and enjoy. I still love discovering new bands, but what I think about my going-to-55-shows-a-year days, I knew there was some middle ground so I wouldn’t get burnt out.
I’ve also liked to joke that I’ve been good lately and have been attending shows from doors opening, and last Friday’s LØLØ show at Amsterdam Bar and Hall reminding me of why I used to love catching all the openers, and just why I love live music so much.
It’s easy to compare LØLØ to Avril Lavigne, to Paramore, and any of the pop punk bands out there in the realm. Hell, she’s toured with a ton of them, including New Found Glory, Simple Plan, Bowling for Soup, etc. So of course there’s going to be some crossover. LØLØ tends to lean more on the pop side of things, which if I’m perfectly honest about, I was apprehensive about how well it’d translate to a live setting. Even if I’ve already seen her once before, last year when she opened for Simple Plan. I had forgotten how it felt then in that moment, plus I probably wasn’t quite in the right headspace.
Last Friday night blew me away. We were two songs into the set and I thought to myself “Ahh yes, this is why I enjoyed LØLØ live before, and why these types of artists are so good live.” To LØLØ’s credit, I loved that she had a full band; there’s just something special about everything (or just about everything) being played organically, and it’s easier for everything to bounce the energy from each other. Throughout the set, there was a voice over narration done by LØLØ, acting and at one point acting as if we were reading her thoughts. I’ve seen it in the past and it came off sort of cliche, but this time around it felt more, I don’t know, authentic?
“Debbie downer” was an obvious hit with the crowd, and it was a sweet to have pulled up a young fan up on stage to sing along, and pretty funny her singing the “that girl is too aggressive
Too, too aggressive” lines and their alternatives in the song. I kept noticing little call backs (or maybe not so little?) throughout the set. Like the start of “faceplant” sounding like “The Middle” by Jimmy Eat World and then a “Mr. Brightside” moment a bit later. In hindsight I realize that that’s probably the point of the song, but still, all those little moments hit nicely. I’m a sucker for a remix, or reimagining of a song.
I got into Amsterdam right as Dawson Gamble was starting to play and they were the surprise hit of the night. Their whole set I was bobbing my head. Lead singer Dawson’s voice reminded me of one of my favorite band’s Dead Poet Society, and the sound of the band as a whole made me think of if Nothing But Theives went in a more straight up pop punk sound. They’re officially on my radar, and will be looking to catch another one of their sets when they come back to town.
I called Amsterdam Bar and Hall a perfect setting for LØLØ when the tour got announced, and I think I did make the right call. Armory might have felt a little too big, at least from my vantage point last year, but a more close knit, intimate vibe proved to be just the right move and the perfect way to go into the weekend.
