With the summer festival circuit not as strong as it once was, the ability to see international acts like Lucy Dacus has become harder to come by. Luckily for Australia, Dacus is currently touring with Laneway Festival and managed to sneak in a headline show at the Sydney Opera House in support of her 2025 album Forever is a Feeling. Even luckier for those in attendance, it was a show that might take the cake for gig of the year at the venue.
Support came in the shape of Stella Bridie. Brandishing nothing more than their guitar, a dry sense of humour and some heartbreaking songs, Bridie was commanding and forceful during the 30-minute slot. Featuring a setlist including “Organ Donor, the angry “Sore Spot” and a cover of the T.A.T.U classic “All The Things She Said”, Bridie set the tone for night and more than set Dacus up for an all timer.
With Dacus and her band entering the stage a little after 9pm, from the opening notes you sensed this was going to be more than just a stock standard show. Dacus’ face lit up from opening song “Hot & Heavy” right through to closer “Night Shift”. It was wholesome and endearing to see how much it meant to Dacus that not only were they playing the Sydney Opera House, but it was sold out. Noting how surreal it was to be playing the venue (‘this is like the first venue I was aware of as a kid…maybe because of Finding Nemo’) made the show just that bit more magical for those in the crowd. Seeing how much this meant to Dacus was honestly the highlight of the night.
With a set that made its way through the majority of her back catalogue, naturally Dacus focused for the most part on her most recent albums (2021’s Home Video and last year’s Forever is a Feeling), with “First Time” and “Ankles” hot out of the gate at the front end of the set, while “VBS”, “Brando”, “Partner in Crime”, “Talk” and “Modigliani” all featured prominently through the middle stages.
Acknowledging the crowd throughout the entirety of the set, you sensed that Dacus had a true respect and appreciation for her fans. From little waves to those up the back, to bows and high fives for the fans down the front, there was a level of love and fun reciprocated between the stage and crowd that couldn’t be beat. It was pure. It was wholesome. It made you feel like maybe the world isn’t a complete bin fire at the moment.
With the set nearing its end, the vibes and momentum picked up once more, as Dacus welcomed Stella Bridie back on stage for a duet on “Bullseye”, while Dacus jokingly wished she was able to marry everyone in attendance (she’s ordained) as she moved into the biggest tear jerker in “Best Guess” (as an aside, I used some of these lyrics in my own wedding vows last year. So thanks, Lucy; they worked a treat). It was four minutes of pure love and affection and an absolute peak of the night.
Closing the main set with “Forever is a Feeling”, Dacus made a last minute dash into the crowd, thanking her fans before subtley bouncing off stage ahead of a short encore. Returning solo to play the fan request “Trust”, Dacus’ band returned for the final two tracks: the Boygenius beauty “True Blue” (‘I’m sorry my other band never made it here’) and the climactic closer in “Night Shift”. Throughout its six minute run, “Night Shift” was everything you’d want it to be – loud, grand, wandering and complete. There’s a reason this was the set closer and Dacus and her band crushed it entirely and thoroughly.
Playing with full hearts and a smile that couldn’t be beaten, Lucy Dacus delivered the set of her life to the Sydney Opera House crowd. As a fan, knowing how much fun she and her band had while appreciating and acknowledging the occasion completely, made the night and set that much more special. Thank you Lucy, let’s do it again some time soon.
FIVE STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
Lucy Dacus continues around the country with Laneway Festival this week. For more information, head HERE.
Reviewer attended 10.02.26
Photos by Jordan Munns.
