Elijah Leckerman | Staff Writer

The grainy sounds of radio static played on the speakers as the band walked onto the dimly lit stage set up like a makeshift campground, introducing the concert sonically in the same way as the album about to be performed. In the small but mighty Delmar Hall, situated nearby on the Delmar Loop, indie pop artist Samia Finnerty — known merely as Samia — graced St. Louis with a performance of her “Bloodless” tour on Tuesday, Sept. 30.

Since its release on April 25, “Bloodless” has been undoubtedly my favorite album of the year, due to its perfectly evocative and perplexing lyrics, paired with catchy but sorrowful melodies — see “Sacred,” for example, which is a sonically lighthearted song focused around the damning line, “You never loved me like you hate me now.” Plus, of course, the indescribable emotion that Samia sings every word with. Since 2020’s “The Baby,” her first LP, Samia has honed a distinct levitating pop sound with a lyrical, indie folk grounding. Now, in the touring cycle for her third album, “Bloodless,” the Minneapolis-based singer-songwriter is reaching new audiences and returning to old ones, singing the beautifully personal lyrics of the album with relatable sentiments.

Of all of the practically perfect 18 songs on her setlist, Samia’s “North Poles” is the one that stood out most to me, both on the night of her show and since the album’s release. Its driving sound and lyrics about friendship make me want to dance while thinking sentimentally about everyone I love — a rare feeling that I think only Samia’s music can really evoke. I definitely wasn’t the only one who wanted to dance, as Samia paved the way for the audience to, with her sways, jumps, and shaking during instrumental breaks, declaring a sense of freedom and fun that radiated through the night.

Thankfully, Samia played every song on “Bloodless,” but there were some strange omissions of songs from her first two albums. In most other shows during this tour, Samia performs “Honey,” “Is There Something in the Movies?,” and “Pool” during her encore. In St. Louis, however, she only played “Pool,” the dreadfully sad and expansive opening track from her debut album, “The Baby,” which has recently received newfound popularity through TikTok. She also left out her newest release, “Cinder Block,” which she released on Sept. 18. The show was also only an hour long, which is a little unconventional for an artist with her repertoire.

The overall energy or feeling of the show was one of comfort and relaxation, supported by the minimal set pieces, the audience’s familiarity with the music, and the band’s casual attire. Every member of Samia’s band had the same dress code: a t-shirt and jeans. But still, Samia stood out, wearing a green shirt with a cartoon cow on it — an unspoken reference to her album’s lead single “Bovine Excision,” which is inspired by the killing of cows.

Samia’s stage was set with two light green lawn chairs and a matching green cooler next to one of them, which was fittingly named “Samia’s Cooler,” as made known by the handwritten name on its front next to a seemingly friendly cartoon mosquito. Dispersed across the stage were short wooden poles topped with orb lights, synced to the overhead and upstage lights. The small lights cast cozy hues that added to the sense of comfort, creating a mood of being in a backyard at nighttime.

Samia did not once mention anything about being in St. Louis, but her opener, country-gaze artist Renny Conti, repeatedly talked about the scone he had eaten just down the street at Blueprint Coffee. He said that he has been trying a scone in every city they have toured in, and St. Louis’ was his second favorite. This statement received many lighthearted boos, so one song later, he clarified that “it was close.”

There were many little moments during the show when you could tell that the relationship between Samia and the audience was special: during “Fair Game,” there were the quick, uniform claps after the line, “You can go outside on a hot night and clap,” and during “Kill Her Freak Out,” the crowd yelled out powerful lyrics like, “I’ll f*cking kill her / And I’ll f*cking freak out.”

Even though the concert concluded by 10:05 p.m., the beautiful music of both Samia and Renny Conti filled Delmar Hall with a feeling of nostalgia and comfort. While Samia’s “Pool” has recently exposed a larger fanbase to her singular sound, the devoted audience of her St. Louis show revealed that her fanbase knows more than just the hits.