By Melissa Wood
Whether you call her Cry Baby, your nymph, or your muse, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to look at Melanie Martinez’s discography to determine that she is nothing short of a lyrical and narrative genius!
Cry Baby’s Origins
Over the past ten years, Martinez has managed to solidify her presence in the music industry through her first three studio albums, weaving an intricate storyline of a character named Cry Baby, and the struggles she faces throughout the different stages of her life including body insecurity, exploitation, hyper-sexualization, bullying, depression, and anxiety. Her first two albums (Cry Baby and K-12) focus on Cry Baby’s life on Earth, highlighting family dynamics and home life in Cry Baby, and the oppressive environment of her boarding school in K-12. Melanie’s third album, Portals kills off this character, and reincarnates her to another dimension as a four-eyed fairy and touches on subjects such as overcoming depression, finding self-worth, cutting off toxic relationships, and growing from past mistakes.
Appreciation That Grew Like a Wonderful Weed
Personally, my familiarity with Martinez stems back to her humble beginnings on America’s The Voice. From the moment she stepped on stage during her blind audition, it was clear that she was born to be a star. Before she opened her mouth, her presence seemed to emanate a calming aura, a feeling that would only grow once she started to sing, as her voice carried a captivating and borderline haunting edge that no one else on the season possessed. While Melanie did not win her season, she still used the foothold the show gave her to sign with a record label and start making music independently.
Now to say that I was an immediate serious fan of Melanie’s would be a bit of an exaggeration. As the title of this section implies, Melanie had a way of growing on me over the years, garnering exponential respect from me with each album release. While I listened to select songs from her debut album, I did not begin appreciating Cry Baby’s character until Melanie’s sophomore album, K-12. I still have distinct memories of watching the full-length feature film she had released along with it that went under the same name in my college dorm room one day and loving the concept of the continuation of Cry Baby’s character. Not even to mention my affiliation with the songs on K-12 (and yes, After-School EP as well!), as I took an honest liking for the R&B and hip-hop undertones and raw lyricism that influenced their production.
Even though I enjoyed Martinez’s work, my appreciation was nowhere near what it would become upon the release of Portals. Some claim that music has a strange way of finding us in our darkest moments, and that’s precisely what happened to me with this album at the edge of last summer. In fact, I connected with it so deeply that I seriously considered attending the Portals tour. However, outrageous scalper prices and the need to work made it impossible. Defeated, I promised myself I would go next time. Little did I know that “next time” would come just a year later, in the form of her iconic Trilogy Tour. Not only did I attend, but I had the privilege of being there as press!
Pre-Concert Misadventures
The Trilogy Tour took place at the Wells Fargo Center, a massive arena with a capacity hovering just above 20,000, a number Melanie effortlessly sold out. Luckily, getting to the venue and figuring out parking was easy. There were minor hiccups when attempting to obtain my tickets at the box office and finding the media entrance, but everything eventually figured itself out. After all the final logistics were squared away, I truly started soaking in the magic of the Trilogy Tour. Now, this would not be a proper concert review if I did not take a second to rave about the fashion that graced this tour. I even heard a fellow photographer say this crowd was one of the best-dressed he had seen in a while- a statement I would say definitely holds up! Everywhere you turned, people were either decked in threads screaming pastel goth, dolled up in Lolita-style K-12 gowns and overalls, or dressed to the nines in fairy-core dresses.
The Warm-Up
I will admit, every time I entered the pit, there was an air of surrealness that hung just before me, making me feel a bit awkward, as I did not know what to do with myself at times. Fortunately, in the months leading up to the tour, I decided to make some friendship bracelets in hopes of trading some of them. So in blatant determination to sink into the awkwardness until it was no longer, I turned off my brain, approached people in the front row, and asked if they wanted any friendship bracelets, to which they enthusiastically complied- and yes, I did even end up getting some in return!
(photo credits: Shozzett Silva)
In terms of openers, this tour went above and beyond. The first opener was Sofia Isella, an alternative musician and classically trained violinist with enchanting lyricism that has a way folding onto itself like warm silver coils. The second opener, Beach Bunny, an alternative/indie rock band that rose to considerable fame with the aid of TikTok, then performed a beautiful and heartfelt performance that left the crowd pumped for Martinez.
Sofia Isella (left) and Beach Bunny (right) help hype up the crowd for Martinez!
The Trilogy-Baby, Girl, and Nymph
Eventually, it was time for the main woman of the night to shine, and shine she did! Over two glorious hours, Melanie showcased the full birth, life, death, and afterlife of her fully-fledged alter-ego: Crybaby.
To open up the show, Martinez formally introduced the audience to Crybaby’s overly sensitive nature, and disturbed family life with the tracks “Crybaby,” “Dollhouse,” and “Sippy Cup.” After that, Martinez moved into “Carousel,” “Alphabet Boy,” and “Soap,” three songs that address relationship struggles like toxic dynamics and the price of oversharing. Lastly, the Crybaby set ended with “Pity Party,” “Playdate,” and “Mad Hatter,” which dive into themes of loneliness, being taken for granted and accepting every side of yourself- even the ones that are insane. It was during this set that I was escorted to the pit to capture some beautiful moments.
The main highlights of the Crybaby set included the opening song “Crybaby,” where Martinez sang on a platform with a rocking crib visual on the screen behind her, along with backup dancers dressed as either rabbit doctors or in baby-core, a vintage carousel set-up complete with undulating seats that eventually caught into flames for “Carousel,” giant inflatable birthday candles that popped up all around the stage for “Pity Party,” and the picturesque dollhouse backdrop that accompanied “Dollhouse,” and “Sippy Cup.”
(photo credits: Shozzett Silva)
After the Crybaby set, the show transitioned into part two with the big screen displaying a giant ocean filled with Crybaby’s crib and toys, and eventually showing the iconic K-12 school bus. In an overt nod to the K-12 film, the bus floated out of the ocean and into the sky to land before the K-12 boarding school to which Crybaby was finally dropped off. As the chorus of “Wheels on the Bus” sweetly echoed throughout the stadium, the scene transitioned into the first half of “Class Fight,” followed by a powerful video interlude featuring a slowed-down snippet of “The Principal.”
Finally, “Lunchbox Friends,” “Teacher’s Pet,” and “Highschool Sweethearts,” rang throughout the stadium to end the K-12 era. Since “Teacher’s Pet,” is considerably a fan favorite, it stole the show, especially when Martinez took to the floor to sing the iconic lyrics “And a lighter when you wanna get high/And mess around ’til you get numb.” Of course, the finale of “Highschool Sweethearts,” was also nothing to sleep on. At the end of the song, cupid flew onto the big screen, and pierced an arrow through Crybaby’s chest, which made a perfect segway into the Portals segment of the tour.
The Portals section began with a 10-minute prelude complete with a cosmic light and smoke show, elegant ballet dancers, and ethereal loaded music before finally opening up to “the creature,” in a graveyard full of mushrooms singing “Death.” Right after this, Martinez brought some much-needed energy to the crowd with “Void,” “Tunnel Vision,” and the glittering “Faerie Soirée,” only to finally slow it down with “Light Shower,” a soothing ballad that tells the charms of true love.
“Spider Web,” “Battle of the Larynx,” and “The Contortionist,” were next, all of which had some outstanding visuals to accompany their performance, including a fly serving sassy choreography after “Spider Web,” the creature slaying a pink dragon during the duration of “Battle of the Larynx,” and some eerie dancing overlining ‘The Contortionist.”
Finally, “Nymphology,” “Evil,” and “Womb,” wrapped up the tour with an unforgettable bang. Looking back, this was probably considerably my favorite part of the show, because there was something so cathartic about singing the feminine-rage anthems “Nymphology,” and “Evil,” in a full stadium- not to mention witnessing the live transition between the two songs which was virtually seamless, just as it is in the album.
The creature sets the stage ablaze to match the feminine rage! (Photo by Shozzett Silva)
Overall Evaluation
All in all, the Trilogy Tour ended up exceeding my initial expectations. From the expressive choreography to the intricate costumes on and off the stage, to the transitions between albums, and the stunning set pieces, this concert was nothing short of a full-blown musical production. In fact, I would say it is one of the most theatrical concerts I have been to thus far, and will probably remain as such for a while! In short, Melanie puts on an excellent show!
Of course, like any other concert, this performance isn’t without its flaws, some of which are subjective. For instance, I could have gone without the long interludes between albums, even though I realize this was most likely due to costume changes. In addition, I was a little bummed to see my favorite K-12 song “The Principal” reduced to a mere interlude, as well as the exclusion of songs like “Training Wheels,” and “Cake” from Cry Baby. Finally, I would have ascended out of my body if “Powder” from Portals (Deluxe) and “Glued” from After School EP were also performed, but at this point, I’m just catering the setlist to my personal preferences.