Indie pop artist Allie X brings showmanship to stage

Allie X brought her fun, experimental music to life at the Double Door. Photo: Logan White

By Johnson Luo 

As part of her national tour, “Doing X,” Allie X performed at Double Door Nov. 19, putting on a fun show.

Allie X’s music is categorized as indie pop, but it has a wide range of possibilities because of its experimental nature.

Showmanship is a big part of her songs. She creates a stage persona of a humanoid doll and makes theatrical dance movements — though sometimes subtle — that help to paint a picture with the lyrics, which are often quite dark.

She swiftly and seamlessly switched between vocal registers to create the feeling of two people interacting during some songs. Sometimes this feeling was captured seemingly by a conversation between Allie X and her guitar.

The conventional elements of her music are worth mentioning. The beats were sophisticated and there was a high level of intricate complexity. The keyboard played a connective role. It filled in the blankness of sound and enforced the wholeness of each piece.

The music itself was already good, but the live performance made it even better. The Double Door is a great venue for small concerts — the audience can get close to the artist and the artist can interact with the audience more easily.

The show was fun and sparked my interest in the indie pop genre.