chicago, illinois - march 2nd, 2025

Grace Enger has been making waves in the indie music scene ever since the release of her debut single, “The Neighborhood” back in 2022. Combining eloquent lyricism alongside an energetic indie pop sound, listeners become completely absorbed in the distinctive atmosphere that surrounds each and every one of her songs. Enger’s latest project, The Alchemist, came out back in December, and she was delighted to reveal a few days prior that she would be taking the project to the road with her first headline tour. “the it’s so fun tour” kicked off on February 19th in San Francisco and continues on towards the end of March, spanning from Enger’s early indie classics all the way until the recently revamped The Alchemist (Gold Edition) in addition to some of Enger’s indie classics.

Up-and-coming singer-songwriter jake minch joins Grace Enger for the “it’s so fun tour;” as close friends and musical collaborators, there could not have been a better choice for the tour’s opening act. minch’s authenticity and vulnerability resonated with the audience as soon as he stepped on stage at Schubas Tavern in Chicago. His set opened with an emotionally tumultuous mash-up that begins with minch’s original song “strip mall” and eventually bleeds into a cover of “Funeral” by Phoebe Bridgers. With just his voice and his guitar, jake minch enamored the entire audience through his gift of story-telling and his soothing vocal performance. Through these first two songs, the audience was fully immersed into the world he creates within his music. This combination certainly encapsulated the words of Phoebe Bridgers: “Jesus Christ, I’m so blue all the time / And that’s just how I feel.” However, it’s never felt so good to feel so sad; it was a simply stunning choice to begin the concert.

jake minch’s setlist somehow managed to grow stronger and stronger from there, featuring stellar performances of his most iconic singles, including “handgun” and “just be ur friend.” With only minch and his guitar, his stripped performance of “jessie” was particularly moving and hit just as hard without all of the theatrics of the original recording. His setlist also featured two unreleased songs, titled “fingers and clothes” and “changed things.” These songs investigate the isolating feelings of growing older and the complex nature of familial relationships, and the struggles jake minch shared through his performance instantly clicked with the audience. You could hear a pin drop as he tugged at the heart strings with “changed things,” and new and old fans alike sang along to the catchy chorus of “fingers and clothes.”

“whose you are” concluded minch’s set before it was time for Grace Enger to take the stage. minch laughed about how “whose you are” is his supposedly only upbeat song, and his performance of the track definitely created an energy that reflected the cozy warmth that makes “whose you are” stand out within his discography. It was clear that he was having a blast on stage while inviting everyone to release the internal thoughts from the rest of the set and let them blow away with the wind. jake minch wore his heart on his sleeve for a heartfelt and genuine performance at Schubas Tavern.

jake minch’s performance got fans even more excited for Grace Enger to finally take the stage. When she ran up to the microphone, the room was filled with cheers from a crowd that was ready to scream their hearts out to every single one of Enger’s lyrics. The show began with a vivacious rendition of “Think I Wanna See You Again.” Off the bat, Enger proved to have an incredibly expressive and thoroughly welcoming stage presence. Every single person in the crowd was radiating with the sheer excitement of watching Grace Enger give every ounce of effort to the music. “Think I Wanna See You Again” was the perfect start to the show. It imbued an immediate sense of nostalgia, an ambience that you never want to let go of. Enger performs in a way that makes you take in all of the joy of the moment, hoping that you can live that high over again and again and again.

After keeping the energy elevated with the lively “Ruin,” the setlist slowed down with “The Alchemist.” Enger showed off her powerful story-telling ability and her stunning vocal performance through the live version of the song. Every word struck an enchanting melancholic chord. All of the pain and desperation Enger demonstrated throughout the song manifested in the feelings of the crowd, due to her ability to easily connect with others and display her immediate feelings through her music. The set stayed upon this more somber note for the next few tracks, as songs like “Bad Guy” continued to show off Grace Enger’s vocal capabilities to their fullest extent. However, the dynamic build of the songs allowed the live band to explode in their instrumental expertise to further complement her singing skills. Andrew Wholf’s guitar playing and Sierra Leuschen’s drumming interweave themselves within Enger’s words and notes with an impeccable wave of passion, creating a sonic experience that is best described as magical.

Shortly after these songs, Wolf and Leuschen stepped off-stage to allow Grace Enger to perform an acoustic set. For the first song, jake minch was invited to come up to the stage and sing the duo’s collaboration, “Good Stuff.” While the lyrics of the track portray a complex narrative about the inability to move on from a former relationship, the musical aesthetic of “Good Stuff” feels closer to a warm hug and a good cry. Enger and minch perform the song with an incredibly wholesome demeanor on the “it’s so fun tour.” Their chemistry is palpable on-stage, highlighting the strength of their friendship and the creative aura that blossoms as a result of their collaborative efforts.

In addition to playing guitar throughout the entire concert, Enger also played her piano several times throughout the acoustic set. A fan was celebrating their 20th birthday in the crowd, so Enger was slightly concerned to sing about her ruminative and petrifying reflections of growing older in the song “20.” In “20,” Grace Enger sings, “Twenty / Waiting like a bullet and a gun / No idea where I’m gonna be at twenty-one.” While Enger noted how perhaps her feelings about growing older might have been a little severe at 19, the inherent link to her younger self was never lost throughout her modernized rendition of the song, attesting to the genuineness of her artistry that echoed throughout every word she sang in the evening.

Nearing the end of the performance, it was finally time for Enger’s debut single, “The Neighborhood,” to make its live Chicago debut. This indie pop anthem was almost even more iconic in-person than the recording. Enger, Wholf, and Leuschen brought the venue to life while performing “The Neighborhood,” dancing around the stage with their instruments and with each other. It was pure, drawing the entire audience into the moment and transforming them into a component of the song themselves. Enger also made it look effortless to pull off insane vocal runs and gorgeous high notes with a tinge of fiery rasp. “The Neighborhood” was nothing short of incredible and a beautiful full-circle moment in Grace Enger’s career as an artist.

What song could possibly be more fitting to end “the it’s so fun tour” than “It’s No Fun?” “It’s No Fun” found the perfect balance between conveying the sadness of the ending of the night in Chicago while simultaneously concluding with a burst of energy that invoked that same exhilaration in Schubas that “Think I Wanna See You Again” did at the beginning of the show. While the band exited off stage, fans were roaring for Enger to come back for just one more song. To the delight of everyone in the room, Grace Enger returned to the stage and took to the piano for a final performance: an unreleased track, titled “Think Twice.” “Think Twice” was breathtaking, leaving everyone in the room speechless and sitting with the devastation that the lyrics, the performance, and the piano so powerfully delivered. Grace Enger created a show-stopping experience for “the it’s so fun tour” that will go down in indie history.

It’s hard to believe that “the it’s so fun tour” is already almost halfway complete. Grace Enger and jake minch will hit nine more North American cities for the rest of the tour, making stops in Toronto, Austin, Los Angeles, and more. You can check out the remaining dates of “the it’s so fun tour” here.