YEULE - Levitation

Yeule was one of my top artists to see for Levitation 2023 in Austin, Texas. ‘softscars,’ Yeule’s 2023 album is an underground masterpiece and has been circulating a lot in the circles I pay attention to. Not to spoil anything, but very likely they will be receiving a spot on astrxl.awards later this year.

I've attended several shows from Ninja Tune artists and they have been home to a number of great performances from Yeule, Thundercat, and Black Country, New Road. I think Ninja Tune’s project does a great job in selecting fantastic artists to represent and I am always on the lookout for performances in my area. 

Yeule was fantastic live with assistance from drummer @flt.n3sss and guitarist (+ opener) Sasami. The live set echoed something out of a horror movie with Yeule’s various Junji Ito tattoos to LED backdrops looking like they surfaced from the gates of Hell. Yuele’s stage presence and outfits are always unique displaying performance art rather than a concert. 

I was standing stage right, a bit elevated and had perspective on Yeule as well as the crowd. Yeule was alternating between soft-depressed shoegaze aesthetics, abstract dream-pop, and ambient tones. At times the tracks would even break down into screamo performances in which she would yell at the crowd to jump and even meow for them. 

As I am sure you can tell with the features at Ethereal, we love strange conceptual art - which is the essence of Yeule’s message. This is someone who is a free-spirit in every sense, devoid of the often overbearing pressures of society. Yeule’s track, ‘dazies,’ was one that I knew would be one of my favorites and even included an impromptu mosh-pit that in their words, ‘unlocked an encore.’ 

We’d love to say more about Yeule, but think we’re going to save it until our end-of-the-year awards. Overall this set was a great way to kick off Levitation 2023 and I got to see another great artist on my checklist.