Lucy Dacus’ grand finale of the Forever Is A Feeling tour washes up on the Jersey Shore

Written by Yukthi

ASBURY PARK, New Jersey – For Lucy Dacus’ final show of the Forever Is A Feeling Tour, she stopped at the Stone Pony Summer Stage, right across from the Asbury Park boardwalk that overlooks the Atlantic Ocean. The indie rock and folk artist brought along Smidley—a power and synth pop project by Conor Murphy—and Ratboys, an indie rock and alternative country group based in Chicago. 

While stepping onto the stage, Smidley wasted no time in getting the whole venue headbanging to their punchy opening tune, ‘Another Devil’, from Murphy’s 2022 record Here Comes The Devil. The whole band made sure to cover the entire platform by constantly moving to the rhythm. Many of them crouched down during buildups, to ultimately spring up and hit the beat drops. 

During Murphy’s breaks between singing and playing guitar, he announced to the crowd that his newest album, Murphy Horse, will be coming out later this year. Its lead single, ‘Capstone’, features Dacus, who joined on stage for its performance. Another key moment was when Murphy pulled out his trumpet during ‘Hell’, an unreleased track also from Murphy Horse. Between his funky glasses with a formal outfit and the range of sounds the band produced, this act was sure to stick with the audience beyond this night.

The sun was still shining bright from behind the stage when Ratboys kicked things off. They kept the energy level high from the previous set while also providing some moments for the crowd to catch their breath with some alt-country tunes. The Americana sound takes their work a step further by incorporating current events in their music. Towards the end of their set, lead vocalist Julia Steiner gave a shout-out to the immigrants of this country, dedicating ‘Burn It Down’, a track from Singin’ to an Empty Chair released this year by the group. 

Steiner also acknowledged the beauty in having everyone at the venue present and actively taking part in events bringing people together. Ratboys’ closing song was ‘Go Outside’, a reminder to everyone to put their devices away once in a while and to soak in what’s around them. As they exited the stage, it was fitting to see the sun setting—one of the exquisite natural wonders of the Earth—on a breezy beach day. 

Dacus lifted the curtain to the main event with her iconic song, ‘Hot & Heavy’ from 2021’s Home Video. Throughout the night, she included a blend of older releases and songs from her latest album, Forever Is A Feeling. Some of those included the more folk-like ‘Ankles’, ‘Talk’, and ‘Limerence’ in the first half of the show. Tracks from 2018’s Historian, such as ‘Addictions’ and ‘Nonbeliever’, featured heavier rock sounds. 

Crew members then carried an ornate couch on the stage for Dacus, her guitarist, and her bassist to sit on during the next numbers. While performing ‘Fool’s Gold’, Dacus paused the show for crowd members who needed security. She ended up holding a mini impromptu Q&A session with fans, during which she endearingly commented that one of the track’s lyrics, “Let's open the door, see how many fit,” reminds her of the crowd in front of her. 

‘Fool’s Gold’ unfortunately had to be cut short, but Dacus continued with the rest of the songs lined up. One of them included a cover of her band Boygenius’ ‘Afraid of Heights’. She then switched out the guitarist and bassist with Murphy to help her sing ‘Bullseye’, which originally features indie folk and soul artist, Hozier. Before playing ‘Best Guess’, she asks the crowd to shout, “Fuck ICE!” with her and then asks, “Who here is gay?” The audience roared with support, and she dedicated the tune to “anyone who almost just raised their hands but one day will.”

Before the last song, she introduced her band and all the people who have helped put this tour and show together. The finale seemed to be the tour and album’s title track, and the stage was emptied. With crowd cheers, however, they came back to the stage, and what may have sounded like booing to others was actually the fans yelling, “Bruce,” predicting the track that followed. Dacus said that although Bruce Springsteen wasn’t present, it would be a crime to not play her cover of his ‘Dancing in the Dark’ at Asbury Park, which was also a request from her father. 

The final shift of the night was, in fact, the legendary ‘Night Shift’. Dacus invited the opening acts, crew members, and anyone else working the event to join the stage, ending with a swarm of people surrounding Dacus as she laid on the stage floor. This gut-wrenching tune has been a staple in her live performances; it was the cherry on top for this closing night of the Forever Is A Feeling Tour.