Live Review: Self Esteem kicks off UK tour at Birmingham's O2 Academy

The project of singer-songwriter Rebecca Lucy Taylor, Self Esteem released her third album A Complicated Woman in April.

The record was the follow up to 2021’s critically acclaimed Prioritise Pleasure and across its 12 tracks covered themes including misogyny, societal pressures and feminism with Taylor’s humour mixed throughout.

The front cover of A Complicated Woman depicted Taylor - hair in braids screaming and wearing a bonnet and a white collar – a scene reminiscent of The Handmaid’s Tale.

And, this was the first version of Taylor those packed into the Academy saw as she walked on stage.

Unaccompanied, Taylor opened with spoken word monolog I Do And I Don’t Care.

However, as its finale – based around the repeating refrain “If I’m so empowered, why am I such a coward. If I’m so strong, why am I broken,” – built, she was flanked on stage one by one by other members of her band, dressed in the same outfits, all singing in unison.

If the powerful opening of Self Esteem’s set built to a choral crescendo, what followed across the 17-song set pulled from a multitude of genres, with tracks mainly rooted in pop and dance with an alternative edge.

Second track Mother stepped things up a gear and now, rather than flanking Taylor, her band mates surrounded her, dancing as she sang – or sat together on chairs which had been placed in a circle on the stage.

69 continued to build on the dance beats of its predecessor - this time with Taylor’s band acting out positions referenced in the song.

While the bulk of Self Esteem’s set was taken from A Complicated Woman, tracks from Prioratise Pleasure were dotted throughout.

Its title track and F***ing Wizardry both went down a storm while the entire Academy was singing along to The Curse and Cheers To Me.

Moonchild Sanelly – who opened proceedings – returned to join Taylor for In Plain Sight.

Ahead of an encore, Taylor paused to speak about Choose Love and the School’s Consent Project – two charities she is supporting on this tour while also reminding the Academy audience of the importance of talking about both.

Self Esteem finished her set with breakthrough hit I Do This All the Time before the finale of Focus Is Power.

Almost every date on Self Esteem’s UK tour is sold out and based on Monday night’s headline set it’s easy to see why.

Taylor is a captivating front woman and over the course of three albums as Self Esteem, has crafted some of the best alt-pop this country has heard in years while also highlighting a raft of crucial societal topics.

Self Esteem played:

I Do and I Don't Care

Mother

Lies

69

You Forever

Logic, B****!

Prioritise Pleasure

F***ing Wizardry

The Curse

In Plain Sight (with Moonchild Sanelly)

What Now

The 345

Cheers to Me

If Not Now, It’s Soon

The Deep Blue Okay

Encore:

I Do This All the Time

Focus Is Power