Anna Shoemaker starts day three of XPNFest with an intimate set at the Marina stage
If you’ve ever drunkenly called your ex up crying, Anna Shoemaker has got a song for you. Her not-so sober confessionals sound like the voicemails you leave amidst a breakup or breakdown. To kick off the last day of the XPoNential Festival, the Brooklyn-based singer/songwriter performed an intimate set at the Marina stage.
Accompanied by her longtime friend, Middle Part, on guitar, she played some crushing unreleased tracks from her upcoming album, which will be out in 2022. Her stripped-down delivery allowed you to feel all of the messy, complicated, and conflicting emotions infused into her lyrics. With an ultra personal approach to writing, her performance was poignant and painful in the best way possible.
At one point, Shoemaker dipped back into her discography and played “Liquor Store,” one of the first songs she ever released. With the same gut-wrenching devastation of Olivia Rodrigo’s “Deja Vu,” it details driving past someone’s house and realizing there’s someone new doing everything you used to.
All of the tracks Shoemaker played had this intense aching. Her lyrics have this sense of longing that automatically sends you back to an exact moment or person. Even if you haven’t blacked out on the floor or had your heart smashed while looking at the New York City skyline, you know exactly what she’s talking about.
Inspiring nostalgia and the underlying desire for the drama that comes with bad decision-making, Shoemaker’s set was a reminder that anyone you miss is a phone call away. If you get the whisky involved, as Shoemaker suggests is another story. Listen back to her performance and check out a photo gallery below.
Sorry All The Time
Everything Is Fine
Liquor Store
It’s Depression
Till I Die
Sick
Change My Mind