Are Encores Stupid?

Public Opinion
August 09, 2024

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A Note from Jack

Every week I get an email with a list of all the concerts happening in the NYC area. It’s one of my favorite emails to browse through because it gives you a real sense of all the shows people are going to see and what types of venues different artists are playing. I try to go to a few shows every month both because I love going to concerts and so I have something to talk about with folks on the show. Given how many people stop me on the street and say, “are you the music guy??” I do feel a certain amount of pressure to stay on top of live music. Sometimes that means scouting out artists we might want to invite on Track Star Presents and I’ve seen amazing live shows from Madi Diaz, Angie McMahon, Flatland Cavalry and Malcolm Todd. Other times I want to see an artist because they’re having a significant cultural impact and I want to see that energy in person which is a big part of why I went to the Noah Kahan show at MSG. Noah is an awesome performer and he’s got some really great songs, but he’s also having a major moment right now. I’ve never felt a crowd as energized at the one at his show. It felt like the top was going to blow off MSG.

One thing that caught my attention at the Noah show was how long he held out on playing Stick Season, which is far and away his biggest song. It totally makes sense to save it for the end. Every time he got ready to start a new song I quietly thought to myself maybe he’s about to play it… but no. The anticipation steadily built for me and presumably many other members of the audience. Finally, Noah and the band walked off stage without having played his biggest song and the lights went out. Was that it? Was Stick Season officially over? Of course not, he was just building more anticipation, and the crowd was screaming louder than ever, begging for an encore. Of course he obliged, climbing back on the stage and finally unleashing the song we’d waited so long to hear.

Of course I knew this was going to happen the whole time. I’m not that naive. Encores have been a staple of the concert going experience at least as long as I’ve been going to concerts. Still, I couldn’t help but wonder, have they lost a little bit of what made them special to begin with? If everyone goes into the show expecting and even knowing there’s going to be an encore, what’s the point? What do you think? I brought this question to a few of the artists I spoke with recently and was actually quite surprised by their different takes which you can read down below.

I also want to share two little pieces of housekeeping. First, I highly encourage you to check out the latest episode of Presents with Tiny Habits, someone in the comments called them a modern Crosby, Stills and Nash… It’s especially fun to watch on a TV. So please subscribe to Public Opinion (we just crossed 200k) and watch us on the big screen! Second, I’d love to hear your thoughts on the newsletter - anything you like, don’t like, want to see more or less of - please let me know by replying to this email. Love you!

How Do Artists Feel About Encores?

Jack: How do you feel about encores?

Dave Bayley of Glass Animals: I love an encore. Why? What are you saying?

Jack: Well I mean…it’s like bullshit, right? Like, you’re going ‘Well, okay, we're leaving!’ but everyone knows you're going to come back.

Dave: Well I mean if they don’t cheer I’m not going back. A few times, I have been like, ‘Look, let’s be honest here. The encore is a bit bullshit-y, so we are just gonna stay on stage and finish the last two songs. And we can even do an extra one if we don’t waste three minutes doing the whole act.’

Jack: But then part of you wants to stand in the back and just…

Dave: Part of me wants a drink of water. Like, two minutes to sit and calm down. Because you’re hot at that point, an hour and fifty minutes in. If it’s a hot day, if it’s sweaty like this…fucking hell.

Jack: You have to be like an athlete.

Dave: It depends what you do.

Jack: It depends what you do. If you just sit in a chair and play acoustic guitar, maybe. But not what you guys do.

Dave: I use the stage show to get in shape. It's like my morning jog. (Laughs). I have fun. It's a lot of adrenaline, lots of moving about. I have been getting ready, getting in shape, for this tour for a few months.

Jack: Do you guys do encores?

Tiny Habits: Yeah.

Maya: We make fun of them though.

Jack: But do you make it pretty clear. Like, give them a wink?

Maya: Oh yeah. We go, (making air quotes) ‘This is our last song!’

Cinya: I am scared they’re not going to want another song.

Judah: Like we’re going to walk off stage, they’re going to leave, and then we get back on stage and the whole room is completely empty.

Maya: So we make it pretty clear that there is more.

Jack: But you do walk off stage?

All: We do. And then we just stand there.

Jack: Do you ever do encores? Do you like encores? Or when you see a show, do you think it's bullshit? Stagecraft?

Ben Goldsmith: Okay, this is my take on the encore. A genuine encore, something that’s not staged—

Jack: A deserved encore.

Ben: A deserved encore after a long show is awesome. It’s so awesome. I could get behind that one hundred percent. But, when it’s staged, and it’s propped up— like, let’s say they are in an arena and are like ‘Oh, you want one more song?’— that’s when it feels cheesy for me. But I mean, if the people want another song… they came to your show, they’re your supporters. I know a lot of people have been hating on encores recently, but I really mess with a genuine encore.

Jack: Have you ever done one?

Ben: I have done an encore before.

Jack: It wasn’t pre-planned?

Ben: It wasn’t pre-planned. I did my show, I had put my guitar down. I mean, obviously we always have a couple extra songs, just in case. But the crowd was crazy, and we were like, ‘Okay, we’re going back out there.’ The craziest encore I have ever done was maybe a year and a half ago in Missoula, Montana. I didn’t think I was going to do another song, but when I finished my last one, and was like ‘Okay, they want another song? We’re going to do it.” And I ended up doing five more. Just the best show I ever played in my life.

Jack: Shout out Missoula.

Ben: Shout out Missoula.