sombr performed his “Late Nights and Young Romance” sold-out Columbus show Friday at Newport Music Hall. Credit: Grayson Newbourn | Managing Arts & Life Editor
At first glance, it looked like a line to get in the bars — hundreds of people wrapping from Newport Music Hall around to 14th Ave. and back toward High St.
These were actually the fans of sombr — an up-and-coming indie rock artist from New York whose songs “back to friends” and “undressed” went viral on TikTok in March — ahead of his “Late Nights and Young Romance” tour stop at Newport Friday. Girls with back pockets painted white saying “I [love] sombr” and “77” — a nod to his album cover — flooded the streets ahead of his performance.
Opening the show was musician Devon Gabriella, who built her career through social media and released her EP, “The Garden,” June 27. A large bouquet of white flowers sprouted from a mossy grass set piece, the buds of which curved up and around the microphone stand as Gabriella performed heartbreak tracks such as “songbird.”
She united the audience through a cover of “Birds of a Feather” by Billie Eilish as the walls shook by the sound of over a thousand people screaming the lyrics back. Opening sets are notoriously low-energy, oftentimes combined with a partially-empty, uninterested crowd. This was not the case for Gabriella’s set — It felt like the sheer volume of the audience nearly broke the sound barrier.
That was until sombr’s set.
As 9 p.m. neared — which is the start time listed on setlist.fm — the pit packed in tight with fans eager for sombr to appear, counting down from 10 and chanting his name when he didn’t come out exactly at that time.
He emerged shortly after, walking onto a funky late-night talk show-themed set complete with coat racks, a vanity mirror and wigs, lounge chairs and a couch. He donned a velvet, brown suit jacket with a black, noticeably unbuttoned shirt and bounced around as he performed “i wish i knew how to quit you.”
He continued on to perform tracks off his debut studio album “I Barely Know Her,” which came out Aug. 22. The 20-year-old musician has had a successful year, achieving commercial success after years of trying to break into the industry. His debut album climbed to No. 1 the week of Sept. 13 on Billboard’s Top Rock & Alternative Albums chart as his fanbase rapidly grew through his social media content.
Midway through his set he performed his breakout hit “caroline,” the heartbreaking, stripped-down acoustic track that led him to a record deal.
What’s admirable about artists like sombr is their willingness for audience participation. More established artists are often unable to foster a deeper connection with their fans due to security purposes — sombr does not let this hold him back.
He brought three fans on stage to FaceTime their exes; most answered, then fell silent when they saw who was on the other end. The stunt brought deafening screams from the crowd during each interaction and even louder screams when he searched for more participants.
He shook his hips and danced loosely around the stage as the venue was lit up by colorful lights that reflected off a hanging disco ball. The singer was the embodiment of Gen Z with his wit, charm and humor. When performing his more notable songs, such as “undressed” and “back to friends,” the crowd could only be described as electric.
Members of the Skins house dance alongside sombr onstage during his performance of “12 to 12” at Newport Music Hall Friday. Credit: Courtesy of Alexis Wade
The self-proclaimed 6-foot-7 musician pulled out a surprise for his final song of the night, bringing out a group of students to dance alongside him on stage. After a long day of hanging around on and off campus, making appearances at parties and nearby places, sombr had made some friends.
Members of Skins, an informal community of girls that he met earlier playing pong, ran on stage to close out the set with him, dancing along to his hit “12 to 12,” according to Alexis Wade, a Skins member and fourth-year in political science.
“He was super fun while playing pong with us,” Wade said in an Instagram DM. “We made a bet that if we beat him he’d bring us on stage and evidently he was a man of his word.”
Emily Ziems, a fourth-year in criminology, is another member of Skins that joined sombr for the final song.
“We were really excited to be invited on stage, some of my roommates didn’t know who he was at first, but we’re all now huge sombr fans,” Ziems said in an Instagram DM. “He was really sweet and it was one of the most memorable moments of my college career!”
sombr also performed an impromptu, free “secret show” following the concert. Emerging from the back door of the venue into an alley packed tight with fans — many of whom couldn’t secure tickets to the main show — sombr brought out his band and guitar and performed stripped-down versions of his top hits.
The rising artist’s humorous, intimate and electric performance has made it clear why he’s taken the industry by storm throughout the past few months.
Rating: 4/5
