Jean Dawson Brings His “Glimmer of God” Tour to Chicago
Last Friday night was an exciting time to be a Jean Dawson fan. Born in San Diego, California and growing up in Tijuana, Mexico, the Mexican-American power-pop sensation had released his 3rd studio album “Glimmer of God”, his first since his sophomore release “CHAOS NOW*” 2 years ago. He also announced alongside it a headlining tour of the same name, which kicked off the same night the album released. Sunday night he performed at the iconic House of Blues in Chicago to celebrate the album release. Having not seen him since his last headlining tour in 2022. I was excited to see what Jean had in store for his fans.
Jean is an artist that I have been following for a long time. Shortly after his debut album “Pixel Bath” in 2020, I was enamored by his unique sound. The sound he brings to the table is unlike any other artist I’ve heard, with a inimitable aesthetic that is unmistakably his own. I saw him live for the first time shortly after discovering him in 2021 as an opening act at the Metro in Chicago. His growth as an artist since has been remarkable, and his live performance has respectably grown just as much. when I caught him on that first show in 2021, Jean was accompanied by a live band, breathing new life into Pixel Bath’s sample heavy, electronic, power-pop sound. However, in 2022 on his headlining CHAOS NOW* tour, his live set had expanded tenfold. The set was refined, old songs had new guitar parts added onto them, the new songs sounded even fresher, a stellar performance from Jean and his live band, who have also assisted in the recording process of some of his discography. Prior to entering Sunday night’s show, I knew I was in for a master-class performance, how Jean would reinvent his take on these new songs in a live-setting was only a matter of time.
I had tried to brush up on my research and gave the new album Glimmer of God a proper listen the day it released. The album is a far-cry from the unique sound Jean had established before. Taking influence from 80s pop like Prince and Chaka Khan. Despite the different approach, Jean’s core themes are still ever-so present. Self-reflection, nostalgia, and coming to terms with his inevitable demise. Dabbling into a disco, R&B influenced frenzy, it would only make sense that his new live show would also reflect that. His production was larger this time around, strobe lights, a thumping bass in the mix, a giant LCD display in the dead-center of the stage behind him and his live band, flashing various images, including different types of glowing crosses, doves, and hellish looking hounds. What was the most eye-grabbing was Jean’s custom winged metal cross microphone stand, which remained in the center of the stage throughout the entire show, as Jean would sing from it.
As the title of the tour suggested, this was very much a tour highlighting Glimmer of God, with a majority of the setlist consisting of songs from the newly released album. This didn’t stop Jean’s devoted fan-base from having a good time, I was shocked at how many people were already familiar with the lyrics, and how into it they were getting. The audience shook the House of Blues to its core, making the floor violently bounce when he launched into the second half of “Play Dead”.
As I expected, the songs felt fresher in a live setting, offering an entirely different experience than just listening to it from a pair of headphones. Fans raged along with Jean throughout the night, Jean taking a moment to express gratitude back to his fans, reminiscing on how he would pass out CD’s of his music to people in high school, hoping someone would listen, to now touring the United States in rooms full of people who love his work.
Jean made room for some older Pixel Bath and CHAOS NOW* tracks in the set, like “Bruiseboy” and “THREE HEADS”, closing out the set with his most streamed track “MENTHOL”, as Jean raged along with his family one last time.
Once again, Jean Dawson proved himself to be a master performer, figuring out a way to not only reinvent himself in the studio, but within a live setting once again. The Glimmer of God tour continues throughout the rest of this year and you can get your tickets here
