Baby Queen / Rescue Rooms / Nottingham

Nov 17

Nov 17 Baby Queen / Rescue Rooms / Nottingham

A trip into the big smoke and to the Rescue Rooms for a sell out performance from alt-pop sensation Baby Queen. Having recently seen artists such as Lauren Hibberd and Maisie Peters I was excited to see what Baby Queen had to offer. Arabella Latham (born 19 August 1997), (known professionally as Baby Queen) was born in Durban in South African before moving to London at 18 to pursue a music career, and in 2020 signed a recording contract with Polydor Records. As a result, her first EP “Medicine” was released in November 2020, followed by her debut mixtape “The Yearbook” in September 2021. She made the long list for the Radio 1 Sound of 2022. Her debut studio album “Quarter Life Crisis” was only released recently in October 2023. She was really propelled into the spotlight following her contribution to the soundtrack for the Netflix smash hit coming-of-age romantic comedy Heartstopper.

First up in support we had a set from Viji, whose album “So Vanilla” only came out last month. A really enjoyable set from Viji with a refreshing sense of 2000 pop-punk. Fresh, fun with some great guitar riffs it was a really enjoyable introduction to the night.

The Rescue Rooms was packed, and nice to see a real mix of people in the audience. The band hit the stage and rip into opening track Quarter Life Crisis, the title track from the new album.

I was surprised how much of an edgy rock feel the tracks had live, the whole band matching Baby Queen’s levels of energy.

Some of the tracks were slower, and more personal and these really shone through, placed well through the set to balance out against the fast paced crowd pleasers.

The set includes a couple of unreleased gems in Kid Genius which is an interesting almost spoken word track, but engaging and infectious, and 23 which is a smooth number.

Latham’s stage presence is engaging and full of energy which has the audience captivated. Latham has a cool charisma and stage persona.

Highlights of the set included the brilliant Die Alone which had everyone dancing along. The crowd go crazy for her 2020 hit track Buzzkill, its is the one featured on the series “Heartstopper” that brought her to a wider audience.

As we move through the set, fan favourite keep coming, in the form of Internet Religion and Raw Thoughts which keep the energy levels high. For me though, the song of the night, was a wonderful performance of Obvious, a moving slow piano ballad that really hits the spot. The delivery is incredibly moving, before it transitions into the more upbeat and lively I can’t get my shit together (what a brilliant song name !).

We enjoy a short two song encore, first up is Want Me which is followed by We Could Be Anything, which is such a fitting and positive end to any set !

I have to say, I really enjoyed both Viji and Baby Queen tonight. Latham is engaging, fun and bright, and has a great voice and certainly engages her audience. A fun night of great music…. Well worth your time !

Setlist

Quarter Life Crisis

Kid Genius

Dream Girl

You Shaped Hole

Every Time I Get High

Love Killer

Die Alone

Buzzkill

A Letter to Myself at 17

Grow Up

Internet Religion