Author: Daniel Truog
Photographer: Noelle Lee
“Do we have any students in the crowd tonight?” Malcolm Todd asked the crowd at Showbox SoDo, most of whom put their hands up. (Myself included, even if that wasn’t the case much longer after the show.)
The first stop on the West Coast of the Wholesome Rockstar Tour brought Malcolm Todd to our fair city on June 6. I had the great fortune of a last-minute KXSU press pass offer to the show, a sold-out affair I deemed too expensive to pay my own way out to. Thank you, KXSU!
Malcolm took the stage with a band of floppy-haired fellows who had names like Jonah and Charlie. They launched right into “Harry Styles,” the opener off his new self-titled album, with one tweak. “The people love me in Seattle,” he sang. Damn he was right. Everyone screamed and cheered him on when the piano guy in the band plucked out the start of “Make Me A Better Man,” a glittery highlight from the April release.
The setlist was packed with crowd pleasers. Audience members I spoke with before the show repeatedly cited his consistency as a point of praise and respect. Though the crowd was clearly ready for viral hits like “Chest Pain (I Love),” they showed love for songs across the LA singer’s three-year discography. It hasn’t been very long since his breakout EP “Demos Before Prom,” but Malcolm’s been prolific. There wasn’t much love on the setlist for that early EP or 2023’s “Shower Shoes,” with the spotlight held firmly on the newest album.
As things heated up in the always-sweltering Showbox, the buttons on Malcolm’s flannel crept lower and lower before an eventual outfit change into a green polo. He later donned a blue wig thrown by a crowd member for “Concrete,” sent the band away for slower tracks “You Owe Me” and “Art House,” then brought the boys back to cover “Our House” by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. This cover did not electrify the audience, but things quickly transitioned back to the bangers.
A clear highlight, which Malcolm himself acknowledged as his favorite on the album, was “Cheer Me On.” The song explodes from a classic Malcolm Todd guitar riff into something more, an autotuned emotional breakdown where he proclaims, “My heart, my heart it beats for you.” After bursting into the supposed final song, previously mentioned smash “Chest Pain (I Love),” the band left the stage.
The encore was a euphoric, perfect blend of self-titled closing track “I’ll Come Back For You” (which, yes, he did) into “Roommates.”
“Roommates” might be Malcolm’s best song, a sad but deviously catchy affair that had the room jumping. As I filed out of the venue, past parents searching for their children, that melody was still stuck in my head.
Should the opportunity to catch a Malcolm Todd show cross your path, you would be a fool not to take it. Good job Malcolm.
Photo gallery credit: Noelle Lee
Daniel Truog I KXSU Blog Contributor and Videographer for The Spectator
Noelle Lee I KXSU Blog Photographer