Charlotte Sands Gives a Commanding Crash Course in Catharsis at Summer School Tour Chicago: Live Review
- Abby Anderson
- Jul 14
- 3 min read
The ornate, romantic setting of Chicago’s Vic Theatre seems an oxymoronic setting for the detonation of the idobi Radio Summer School Tour and its closing headliner - Charlotte Sands. The room already had a buzz after sets from the tour's bill of high-octane pop-rock/pop-punk stars, including Taylor Acorn, Rain City Drive, Arrows in Action, If Not For Me, Beauty School Dropout, and Huddy. But from the fans decked out in past Charlotte tour merch, duped versions of her stagewear, and even rocking their own iterations of her signature mermaid-blue hair, Sands was the star fans deemed worth waiting for.
In a blaze of strobes and gritty guitars, Sands opened with “Tantrum,” an older fan-favorite that still hits like a punch in the chest. A doubly effective introduction and shot of adrenaline, she sang, “I’m throwing a tantrum, comin’ in so chaotic!," making The Vic hers from the jump. And it barely mattered that this was only night two of the tour—Charlotte already moved like a headliner with nothing to prove and everything to burn down. Dressed in a Hot Topic-core pleated mini skirt, an edgy belt, and a t-shirt proudly reading “KESHA RECORDS BITCH” in loud yellow letters, Charlotte Sands commanded the stage with the charm and finesse of a well-seasoned rockstar.
From there, it was a rapid-fire onslaught: “Bad Day,” “pity,” “use me”— each song a burst of pure, unruly catharsis. Charlotte was out in full form - grinning, dropping to her knees, bending over backwards, and tossing her mic stand to the ground as an extra exclamation point as she sang, "I think I'm losing it, is that what you want?" Charlotte Sands is a master at turning single lines into moments, as she cheekily turned the mic to the crowd for: “She looks photoshopped, but she’s standing right there” and let the room scream it back.
Without missing a beat, she turned the tide from the old to the new: “Can I play you an unreleased one?” she asked, smiling, telling fans to just make up their own words to the song. The crowd didn’t hesitate. What followed was “Neck Deep,” a yet-to-be-released track (dropping August 1, per quickly-fleeting video signage posted between sets). Danger-red lights pulsed against visuals of a burning house, creating a visceral backdrop as she belted, “Why would you build me up and let me love you just to let me down?”
She slowed things down for “Alright”— but even here, Sands didn’t lose momentum; she only grew stronger. An intimate monologue about turning the light on her darker days segued into a sea of phone flashlights and her most delicate, crystalline vocals of the night. Leaning into her turquoise electric guitar, she soared through dually poignant and painful lines like, "No, I'll never be all right, but I hear that it gets good, I'm thinking that I could in time." By the end, she passed her pick to an emotional fan in the front row—because even in her heaviest moments, Charlotte doesn’t solely perform for her fans. She connects with them in every way she can.
Then came “spite,” and with it, the throttle cranked back up. The crowd jumped, fists in the air, as giant pink visuals flashed: "FUCK IT I’LL GET FAMOUS OUT OF SPITE!"—a sentiment as iconic as it is Charlotte-core. The back half of her set made room for pure fun - a moment for her guitarist, Dillon Jordan, to unleash a worship-worthy solo, center-stage proclamations to love who you love in front of a visual flashing gothic script spelling out "Dear boy, I love the way you wear that DRESS. Love, Charlotte," and creating moments with fans in the front row, laughing at one wearing a Charlotte t-shirt as she sang the line "While my names in lights you'll be out in the crowd with my picture on your shirt" and grabbing their outstretched hands during "Dress."
Finally, it was time for “HUSH,” the exclamation-point finish. Kicking high in her knee-high leather boots and swinging her hips to visuals of lips screaming "HUSH!" in flashing all-caps, Sands sealed the night in a glam-punk fever dream—loud, electric, and completely hers.
The idobi Radio Summer School tour may be a warm-up for the upcoming Vans Warped Tour dates—but in Chicago, Charlotte Sands made one thing undeniable: Summer school’s in session—and she’s the one setting the grade-A standard.
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