Something about playing at the Théâtre Fairmount SCREAMS that they’ll be headlining major venues the next time you see an artist play, if they even come to Montréal again. The last time I was in this venue was October 12th, 2023, when I saw Chappell Roan play, so when I saw that Rachel Chinouriri was playing there this year on May 16th, I KNEW I had to be in that room before her tickets flew out of my price range forever. All I Ever Asked For Was a North American Tour is also a fabulous tour name, and I have no shame in admitting that I bought the 2000s pop princess tour shirt gleefully and with gusto as soon as the concert finished.
I’ll have y’all know that I asked to review this concert on February 24th, BEFORE she opened for Sabrina Carpenter on her European Short n’ Sweet Tour from the 3rd to the 23rd of March. Being able to review shows for artists I love as a way to help promote them to others is truly what I live for. Especially if I feel like they aren’t getting enough love and attention, as a lot of up-and-coming artists don’t.
The way I discovered her was convoluted as always. I love another British artist also from London, Cat Burns, in both a very professional music critic kinda way and also in a deeply lesbian solidarity kinda way. Stream “GIRLS!” if you want to happily bop around in the kitchen while you make coffee as the sun streams in. Cat Burns and Rachel Chinouriri collaborated on “Even” in October 2024, and I discovered another artist to listen to. And now, thanks to Rachel and her choice in openers, I have two more artists to listen to: Bizzy and Alemeda (who duetted “Even” with Rachel and KILLED IT). More pop rock/alt pop girlies in my playlists, my beloved.
The concert vibes Rachel curated were immaculate and iconic. She seamlessly blends the musical and fashion vibes of Britney Spears, Avril Lavigne, and Alicia Keys with the iconic Britpop sounds of the 1990s. The pop, rock, and soul fused to create something so nostalgic from the 1990s/2000s, yet fully morphing into new and exciting sounds. Honestly, anyone who can do a full set in calf-high New Rock boots, knee-high socks, a pink sequinned halter top, pink wrap skirt and matching barrettes has my full and unwavering respect.
And just when I thought Théâtre Fairmount couldn’t get any more intimate, the infamous on-stage air circulation fans claimed another victim and caught Rachel’s hair in her eyelashes, causing one of them to detach. Talk about a stripped-back set! Her confidence never wavered through this ordeal, although she did say that she felt a little naked without them. We might be the only show she didn’t wear lashes for, if we’re lucky.
She commanded the crowd like a master puppeteer, singing on her knees, jumping into the crowd, describing what to picture when she was singing certain songs, and acknowledging how lucky she was to be a Black girl from London on stage here in Montréal. She has that shimmering star quality that radiates out from her that lets you know that you’ll never be this close to her again because you’ll be in the nosebleeds.
She also passed the flag test at this concert as fans were able to personally hand her a Canadian flag that said “All I Ever Asked For Tour” with a bunch of signatures and notes written on it, which she was really excited about! You could tell the crowd was pretty aggressively anglophone since it was a Canadian flag instead of a Québec flag, but I don’t think someone not from here would pick up on that.
I won’t lie, I was heavily dissociating at this concert, and it’s a whirlwind blur in my memory with moments of violent clarity. If you have TikTok and are of a particular demographic, you might remember when Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department dropped, and there was a trend of people saying they wanted their boyfriends to dump them for a week so they could experience it heartbroken?
Yeah, well, my (now ex) partner lovingly dumped me in the middle of a torrential thunderstorm on the other side of town three hours before I had to be at the Rachel Chinouriri concert to review it. So there I was, a few hours before the show on the other side of Montréal, sobbing on the phone to my best friend, literally DRENCHED with rain to the point of leaving a trail of water behind me like a slug while we made a game plan to get through the evening.
She met me at the door with a towel and bottle of Powerade, and after a solid hour of crying on the floor of my living room, I reached into my closet and grabbed the shirt on the top of the pile—which was of course not just a plain black shirt like I thought but was in fact my shirt that says “world’s best ex-girlfriend.” Ah, the sick cruel irony of the universe. But it was too funny and way too late to change after I realized.
I honestly think I should get an award for both the quick turnaround and the fact that through the power of friendship and the STM I was able to arrive at the venue only one song into Bizzy’s set—dry, watered (I chugged that Powerade like I got iced), hydrating face cream ON THICCC for my poor under-eye skin, and as ready to review as I was gonna be.
When I say I have never and will never experience “My Everything” like that again, I mean it. There is nothing as prolific as hearing a song so relevant to your situation played live and sung directly to your face that you feel like you were stabbed through the heart in public. It somehow gutted me like a fish and resurrected me all at the same time.
Rachel, darling, I love your work so much and I am rooting for you to pop off on the charts with my whole heart, but girl please—I never ever want to experience a song like that ever again.
This was, of course, also the day I met the founder of Montreal Rocks, Steve, in person after collaborating on projects together for over a year—face puffy, voice long gone. When it rains, it pours, am I right?
Anyway, if you’re gonna get your heart ripped out of your chest, I highly recommend going to a Rachel Chinouriri concert and screaming along to “All I Ever Asked,” “Never Need Me,” and “Dumb Bitch Juice.” It was extremely cathartic and probably fast-tracked my hot girl summer.
Oh, and then meeting up with your best friend to get breakfast at midnight at your favourite diner. Sometimes you need a double win after such a devastating turn of events.
Setlist
- Garden of Eden
- Cold Call
- My Everything
- It Is What It Is
- 23:42
- Even
- Dumb Bitch Juice
- What A Devastating Turn of Events
- My Blood
- Robbed
- So My Darling
- The Hills
- Can We Talk About Isaac?
- All I Ever Asked
- Never Need Me
Review – Ashtyn Turner
Photos – Lauren Harris and Steve Gerrard
