Lucy Dacus last played NYC's Central Park in 2019, when she was supporting Mitski there; on Thursday night (7/21), she returned to headline the venue. It was a scorchingly hot afternoon -- security wielded a hose to shower the crowd waiting by the stage with water -- but as evening fell, enough of a breeze kicked up to make the temperature at least semi-tolerable, and when Lucy went on (following an early pause to get help for someone in the crowd who didn't feel well) her gorgeous voice and songs acted as a balm, transporting us away from the heat. To sweeten the deal, Lucy brought along a string quartet to join she and her band on most songs, and they sounded fantastic, amplifying the emotional crescendos of her narratives. The stage was thoughtfully set with a screen that displayed some actual home videos between sets, a couch for the string players, and machines that dispersed bubbles at just the right moments.
Lucy's set included her new cover of Cher's "Believe," as well as a rendition of Bruce Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark," in honor of her dad being in the audience. She also played plenty of highlights from last year's excellent Home Video, including "Triple Dog Dare," "Thumbs," "VBS," "Going Going Gone" (which she brought out openers Hop Along for), "Hot & Heavy," and more, along with a good selection of older favorites, like "Night Shift," "I Don't Wanna Be Funny Anymore," and "Addictions." She closed the night by debuting a brand new song, which she asked people not to film. It sounded lovely; hopefully we'll be hearing it more soon.