Free at Noon Flashback: Maggie Rogers grooves her way into the hearts of pop fans with an electric performance

Maggie Rogers | photo by Tiana Timmerberg for WXPN

Alternative pop princess Maggie Rogers made a stop by World Cafe Live for an energized Free at Noon, taking time out of her sold-out tour of the great United States to pay one of her favorite stations a visit. Just like her sparkling blue kicks, her brand of singer-songwriting adds that ounce of shiny flair with a fantastic blend of folk harmonies paired with booming electronic instrumentation.

Her debut release Now That the Light is Fading captured another millennial take on those head-spinning intricacies of love, as Rogers spends the set thinking of how her love could (and will) get better. Doing it through spacey sounds and many pounding pop hooks, she nips at the heels of Lana Del Ray and Tove Lo without stepping on their toes, discovering familiar yet unexplored territory. Her set opener “Color Song” defined the skeleton of that mantra, with ambient crickets being the only living thing to keep her haunted psyche company. Songs like “On + Off” and “Dog Years” hit a little harder through Roger’s insanely soothing registry and dreamy synths, as she expressed it with an exploration of the entire stage with her in-the-moment grooves.

In between demure moments of “thanks” and requests for the crowd to “uncross your arms and move around a little,” Rogers really showed that while she’s skyrocketing in this industry, she’s still that quirky girl from Maryland. And boy, did the crowd dig it, proven by the roaring applause after every single song. Before she took off for her sold out show at the Foundry this evening, she finished with her climbing single “Alaska”, the perfect song for any emotionally-twisted teen looking to escape those lonely summer nights. She will strike a chord with the flower-crown wearing youth of America, and although I wasn’t donning the Coachella cliche, I felt something too.