Horsegirl at Scala

Horsegirl

Sarah Meth

Scala, 29 June 2025

I finally got to see Chicago trio Horsegirl playing the last night of their UK tour with a sold out show at the Scala!

I first became intrigued with Horsegirl, knowing nothing about them, when I heard their debut album, Versions Of Modern Performance, back in 2022 and fell in love with its simple, post-rock sound, that reminded me of those excellent lo-fi indie bands from my youth like Yo La Tengo, The Breeders and even Sonic Youth. They even reminded me at times of The Velvet Underground but aside from this I really knew nothing about them, other than the fact they were an all-female band. Their second album, Phonetics On And On, came out earlier this year and had me equally intrigued, so when they announced a date at the Scala I was excited to finally catch them live. 

Unfortunately for me, after buying a ticket, Kim Deal then announced her solo show at the Roundhouse, and after missing her Barbican gig, I felt a little gutted I would miss her again but also didn't want to miss Horsegirl either. Fortunately for me they sold out their first date at Scala and then announced a second! So I sold my ticket, bought another one for the new date and was able to see Kim Deal (and I'm so glad I did, as it really was something special) and Horsegirl too. It was a win-win for me!

I knew Horsegirl were a young band though so I did have a few misgivings: would I be the oldest one there? This thought has definitely put me off going to see other acts in recent times, but thankfully, when I arrived there were actually quite a few people my age (many of whom I recognised from the MJ Lenderman show funnily enough), so I did breath a big sigh of relief. It was funny though, going from the Tift Merritt show where I was practically a youngster in the crowd to being amongst the oldest tonight, I'm not sure which I liked better to be honest!

Before Horsegirl though came the opening act, Sarah Meth, a waif-like British blonde girl, who looked super young too. Despite her name making it sound like she may be a punk rock act, Meth instead played an acoustic guitar and sang noirish singer-songwriter tunes that reminded me a little of Angel Olsen.  One of the songs she announced was called Romance Is Dead, which may well give a good idea of the gloomy feel of the songs. For a couple of tracks, she put down her guitar and sang over a slightly more poppy backing track instead, which added a little more diversity to her sound.

She definitely had a good voice and some interesting songs, so on the whole I enjoyed her set, but like the last time I was at the Scala, the air-conditioning drowned her out a little and she did feel a bit of a mismatch with Horsegirl I thought. She mentioned though that they are friends and had played together before, so that probably explains her support slot more than any musical kinship.

It was, once again, one of the hottest days of the year, so I was glad when not only did Sarah Meth come on early but Horsegirl themselves arrived on stage at 8.30pm sharp. The first thing I noticed was just how young they looked: although they are in their early 20s, they looked more like teenagers (and indeed, their first record was actually recorded when they were teens) and were also all incredibly petite, which just added to their youthful look. But I absolutely loved their style: Nora Cheng had a simple black top and cropped trousers, Penelope Lowenstein had a sleeveless pullover and a mid-length skirt and drummer Gigi Reece wore probably the most rock look, with a graphic tee, that showed off her tattoos. It was all completely effortless cool.

They began the show with the opening track from their new album, Where'd You Go, starting as they meant to go on, playing almost all of the new record, with only two songs from their debut. Lowenstein, with her long wavy hair and fridge, reminded me of a young Kristin Hersh, and had a steely stare (much like Hersh too) as she performed. It was interesting too to see that both Lowenstein and Cheng played guitar, with them alternating playing the bass-like parts on the guitar.  

I thought Cheng looked a little more shy on stage, while Reece was all smiles and warmth, clearly enjoying banging away at her drums. At first, it did seem like Lowenstein was the more of the main focal point, with her distinctive low almost, monotone  voice but about halfway through she and Cheng swapped instruments and places on the stage, and, while most songs featured both harmonising, there were a few where Cheng sang the lead, and briefly became the focal point.

That said, Lowenstein was the only one in the band who said anything at all during the show, mentioning that they had played the Scala a week ago and now they were back for the final show of their European show. But that was it really, the focus was ultimately on the music and not talking, and while the two frontwomen, didn't really interact too much, they definitely seemed like they relied on each other, constantly looking at each other, their guitars intertwining and their vocals beautifully blending.

Highlights included the brilliantly rhythmic Switch Over with it's hypnotic refrain "switch over, switch on" and the lead single from their debut Anti-glory, which is probably the track that drew me to them in the first place. 

Then before I knew it, after singing 2468, which went down particularly well with the crowd, suddenly it was over! They said goodbye and walked off stage, as the lights and music came back on. There was no encore, which I always appreciate, although I think the audience may well have enticed them back for more, but apparently the band always do a 13-song set, as they did tonight. Looking at their setlists, they pretty much stick to the same one too, so swapping their previous Scala show for this one, the only thing that seemed to be different were their outfits and the support act. Plus it was actually nice to see them on the last night of the tour.

So it was all over by 9.30pm, which was very strange leaving the venue and it was still light outside! And I got home super early too which was also refreshing. After the show, the whole band came out and stood next to the merch stand, and I pondered buying a CD (I already have the vinyl for both their albums) and getting them to sign it, as they seemed super friendly and nice, but I could see their fans of a similar age getting their pictures taken with them and I thought, that's probably best left to the kids! But it was lovely to see and I appreciated the punk rock aesthetic immensely.  

This was a really nice, non-showy, low-key gig though. I loved how concise it was, I thought they sounded absolutely great and if I were younger, I know I would be in total awe of how cool these girls are. It will be interesting to see where they go next and if they stretch their live show out or turn it into something different. It was great to hear the songs live for sure but it was essentially the album note for note.  Of course, the simplicity of their performance is a huge part of their charm as well as their slightly awkward air on stage. I couldn't help but enjoy their show, there was something completely refereshing and old school about it, yet still completely youthful and now. Great stuff.