Girl Noise Festival— For Girls, By Girls
The Girl Noise Festival is founded on the pillar of female representation in the music industry. Each bill is full of femme-fronted artists, uplifting the local music scene to exhibit and spotlight bands to all music fans alike. OTR editor, Syd Copeland, interviewed Girl Noise founder Simone Lipkin about the origins of the festival (read that here)!! They explained that “Every [Girl Noise] show is a fundraiser, every ticket a direct act of support, and every lineup a deliberate curatorial choice rooted in diversity and community.” For this evening, ticket sales directly supported The Lower Eastside Girls Club. Every detail was well thought out, from the organization booths to promote and share their initiatives, to the fun beaded bracelets and spray-paint style merch reading “I <3 Girl Noise,” and down to the details of small jars of pink candy that sat along the bar.
The bill at the Sultan Room featured eight artists: buffchick, Father Koi, Speedrun, Leyla Ebrahimi, Simone, For Opal, and Caitlin Starr.
buffchick inaugurated the second-ever Girl Noise show. Their set consisted of a classic singer-songwriter sound, with just the singer and a single guitar on the stage. The music is spellbinding in a sense; each person in the audience seemed locked into watching the stage and listening to the lyrics intentionally. Take a listen to the very fun and personable lyrics in “IDK!!” and also “Show You Something.” It’s quite mesmerizing.
Second was Father Koi, who presented a high-energy electronic set, which felt reminiscent of the early 2000s with her dancy, pop-diva energy. It was just the lead singer and drummer on stage, who both performed very dynamically and spirited. During her set, her music occasionally swung towards the rock genre, playing a few songs with accompanying fuzzy guitar, which was just the cherry on top.
Next up was Speedrun, a softer sounding alt-rock female fronted band with the goal to “play fun songs” during their set. The lead singer wore a stunning full-length beaded dress with a guitar strapped around her neck. The band’s set was full of intriguing guitar riffs and buoyant rhythms which created a captivating performance. Listen to “What He’s Used To.”
Following was Leyla Ebrahimi. She and her band had great stage chemistry. Her first song began with her screaming into the microphone, which immediately pulled the crowd in towards the stage. Throughout her set Leyla jumped around on stage, singing with incredible stamina and keeping a steady voice. I was especially taken and impressed by the well-executed harmonized guitar riffs in “planet you forgot me.”
Simone, founder of the festival, played a set that featured a full band with her singing and strumming an electric guitar. Her music is often upbeat on the surface with pun-like lyrics that are easily singable and extremely relatable. For example, her last EP is titled Sad Songs for Depressed Girls. Not sure what could be more relatable than that. She has two singles which both have amassed over a million streams on Spotify alone, “Nevermind” and “Kissing Strangers.”
Before For Opal began, lead singer Sohvi took off her shoes and performed in socks, seemingly feeling the music like a sound bath, the reverberation coming up through her body. For Opal's music is enchanting and teeters between soft lullaby-like vocals and strong rock heavy instrumentals, and when mixed it’s hypnotizing. Listen to their latest release, “Fable.”
Caitlin Starr closed off the amazing sold-out evening with a punk rock and bass heavy set. The three-piece band took to the stage in all black and leather, immediately peaking the interest of the audience. The second their amps were turned up people were hooked. Listen to “Take Me Down,” or “Fix.” Thank me later.
Throughout the night several speakers presented on stage and spoke about multiple causes, including Tone Shift Collective, HeadCount, and The Lower Eastside Girls Club.
Tone Shift Collective spoke about their initiative to promote gender diversity in the music industry, even hosting monthly listening parties for new and breakout artists.
HeadCount spoke about the importance of voting—very important! The organization attends concerts, festivals, and events all around the country and tables events to make it easy for people to register to vote who haven’t yet done so.
And lastly, The Lower Eastside Girls Club spoke about their educational and artistic programs for young women, even bringing a few people on stage who had attended the club during their youth. As the director finished speaking, Simone brought out a cake onto the stage to sing “Happy Birthday” to the club for their 30th anniversary. The evening was filled with community, discovering new music, and an overwhelming positive vibe that radiated throughout the room.
Keep up with Girl Noise on Instagram to stay tuned for their next show! You can’t miss it.
All photos by Tori McGraw (@afterr.hourrs)
