BOOTS 'AQUARIA' Release Show Photos + "C.U.R.E." Late Show Performance

BOOTS, the musician Jordan Asher, isn’t a household name. He isn’t even the easiest internet search. But he has made his name producing tracks for Beyoncé, FKA twigs, Run the Jewels and more. With the release of his debut album AQUARIA this month, BOOTS decided to forgo any of the celebrity connections and do a record that lets his skills as a singer/rapper/producer/guitarist shine — he’s got almost as many slashes as Grimes does. The New York Times describes the album as, “a post-apocalyptic soundscape that’s simultaneously desolate and pressured.”

BOOTS intended to take the stage on November 13th in celebration of the release of AQUARIA. Instead, his performance was overshadowed by the news of the terrorist attacks in Paris. Asher responded by asking the audience to raise their hands up high in solidarity and then change the tone of their message by raising their middle finger. It unified the people in attendance — the sold-out show seemed less than full perhaps due to fears from the events in Paris — and encouraged them to take a trip down his bleak, hypnotic path. From the small stage, BOOTS’ performed a tight set with his backing band (there was only one drummer for this live show though he has incorporated two in the past). His joy was explosive as he bounced across the stage with his guitar or flailed above his keyboards. This kept the audience captivated through a set including “C.U.R.E.” (which was recently performed on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert), the disruptive “Bombs Away” (maybe Asher should use this song to give global leaders advice on how to handle ISIS) or the dubbed out worldly of “Earthquake”.