Live Shows: Jessica Pratt and @, The Sinclair, Cambridge, MA 7/27/24

Jessica Pratt may not be the biggest artist of 2024, but she most certainly is one of the most beloved. That adoration was in full effect Saturday night at The Sinclair where a sold out crowd hung on every word and note of one of their favorite artists. This was not an evening for those that were curious. All five hundred and twenty five in attendance stood completely rapt for the entire performance.

Jessica Pratt's show is a quiet one. All four musicians were sitting for the performance, and, despite having been to The Sinclair dozens of times, Saturday night was the first time I was aware of the noise caused by the HVAC system. The audience was dead silent during each and every song. Even between song chatter was kept to a bare minimum, and when it did happen it was barely even whispered. The crowd seemed to skew younger than I expected, and while "the kids" get a bad rap at shows, they were beyond well behaved for Jessica Pratt.

And they were rewarded with a night of exceptional music. Playing almost all of 2024's Here in the Pitch, every song was greeted with a quick rush of applause or a gasp of approval. Pratt has achieved a strong cult following, and it was impossible to not be sucked into her performance. Not many artists can command such attention sitting for an entire set, but with songs as breathtaking as "Life Is" and "World on a String," it's impossible not to win over a crowd. While not exactly being a "Hello Boston!" style frontperson, Pratt was just oozing with stage presence, in her own quiet way. She is simply a superstar in the making.

@ opened the night, and I was completely unfamiliar with them due to the very hard to Google name. They started off with some fairly standard alt-folk, but as the songs progressed they got more experimental and interesting. Members of the band played the typical guitar, bass, and drums, but also cello, flute, and a toy wind instrument. A good portion of the crowd was very familiar with their songs, and those of us who weren't were quickly won over. They seemed like a version of Twisted Pine filtered through the Army of Broken Toys. @ is a very interesting and unique band who will be worth the difficulty Googling.