Beach Bunny and an Untraditional Concert Venue

Photo by Brianna Hernandez

Beach Bunny has remained one of my favorite bands since the first time I heard them around six years ago. It has now been a little over a month since I attended my fifth Beach Bunny concert. Despite having attended five different shows, I have yet to see a performance of theirs at the same venue twice. I have been in the crowd at various concert halls, a rooftop, and even the campus of a college I don’t go to. This most recent venue, though, was especially notable in comparison to the previous, more traditional, locations I’ve seen them perform; this show was held inside a record store. 

Rough Trade in New York City is in midtown Manhattan at Rockefeller Center, neighboring Radio City Music Hall and the NBC Rainbow Room, and stands just a short walk away from the iconic lights of Times Square. In addition to being a typical record store, if one enters Rockefeller Center and heads downstairs, they would find Rough Trade Below, which also occasionally serves as a performance space.

I saw the tickets for the Beach Bunny event and thought about how unique and interesting it would be to attend a performance at Rough Trade, where I have shopped many times before. Unlike a concert hall, a record store can accommodate significantly fewer guests. I arrived at the event and found it pleasantly intimate, even though I arrived later than I had originally planned. Being closer to the back of the crowd did not mean entirely sacrificing my chance at having a decent view—I was still fairly close to the band. 

Do not let the sweet pastel and bubblegum aesthetic of Beach Bunny fool you—they always come out to rock. Despite their virality on TikTok, I have always noticed a wide range of ages in the crowds that attend Beach Bunny shows, rather than a solely younger audience. Lili Trifilio, the band’s lead vocalist, controlled the stage with the same power she would have in a bigger venue, hyping up the crowd and getting everyone to move. Trifilio even encouraged everyone to mosh and not worry much about the fact that we were in a record store throughout the set. They performed songs from all parts of their discography, spanning from older tracks from Honeymoon and Emotional Creature to new ones from Tunnel Vision, as well as a then-unreleased track, “Year of the Optimist,” for the first time. From beginning to end, Beach Bunny put on yet another incredible show, instantly making the space and crowd come alive. 

After their set, the crowd was instructed to line back up outside and wait for the record-signing/ meet-and-greet portion of the event. Everyone received a Rough Trade-exclusive vinyl to get signed by the band. Beach Bunny fans have consistently been some of the kindest and friendliest people, which says a lot about the band itself. My expectations for the band were proven right as I watched them interact with fans and waited for my turn. I was extremely grateful to have this opportunity and found it admirable that Beach Bunny and Rough Trade hosted the event. 

I highly recommend attending a Beach Bunny show at least once. Their EU/UK tour begins in two weeks, so if they end up in your area, I say buy the ticket. If you cannot attend, at least stream “Year of the Optimist!”