“I want people to be free at my show”, Alison Wonderland declared towards the end of her sold out set at the Great Hall in NYC. “If you’re judging anyone, you shouldn’t be here”. The crowd erupted – it was 2:45 am, and there I was, purple eyeliner dripping down my face, dancing my ass off with an endless sea of friendly strangers. The Wonderland Warehouse Project had lived up to its name: think a bunch of people in a giant industrial space, insane laser lighting, and plenty of freak out drops that left me both sweaty and deliriously happy. Technically, Great Hall is an official venue within Avant Gardner, but the warehouse rave vibes were still strong – by the end of the night, I’d ended up with a kandi bracelet that read “Wonderland”, watched the show through prism glasses, and received an invite to another set from people who just wanted to keep the good feelings going. One dude proudly showed off his Alison tattoo, another stared straight ahead the whole time, only speaking to blurt out things like, “Dude. DUDE. She’s amazing”. Not gonna lie, I totally agree.
If you look at Alison Wonderland’s twitter bio, you’ll see the following: FMUOASL. I make music, I don’t wear pants, unapologetically myself. FMUOASL, aka “fuck me up on a spiritual level”, is Alison’s tagline and the perfect way to describe what happens when you see her live. She’s a rare gem of a triple threat who does what she wants and completely owns it, seeing as she produces her own tracks, sings her own shit, and entertains instead of hiding behind the DJ booth. And the no pants thing? An iconic look that matches her iconic party performances: we’re talking Alison thrashing around the stage in thigh-highs like a firecracker, kneeling on the DJ booth in front of flashing light towers and close-ups of her face, and jamming with a pair of marching band drummers who doubled as a hype crew – because hey, why the hell not? The tour is an unapologetic throwdown full of relatable, relevant snapshots (and a whole lot of techno), and it totally works. Somehow, she meticulously blended Lizzo’s ‘Truth Hurts’ into ‘I Want U’, smiling at the ecstatic reaction from her fans. At another point, several Baby Yoda clips flashed behind her, which quickly ended up all over our Instagram stories. Even Alison’s own bops like ‘Okay’ and ‘Cry’ had the audience – including myself – dancing like we were still at home in the safety of our bedroom mirrors. And when she got behind the microphone stand to sing? We all absolutely lost it.
So in conclusion: Is it good enough? Hell yeah it is – Alison Wonderland live is the ultimate party for anyone who wants to jump and shout and scream, without judgement, just because they feel like it. It’s more than just good, its freaking fantastic.
Tickets for Alison Wonderland’s remaining ‘Wonderland Warehouse Project’ are available here.
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