Lucius frontwoman Jessica Wolfe can recall in great detail the magical first night she ever performed alongside Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Roger Waters.
“We were singing through ‘Mother’ and ‘Brain Damage’ and people started crying — in the most beautiful way,” Wolfe recalls. “An eclipse starts, the skies part and a rainbow appears over the water. I was just pinching myself.”
Moments like this have become commonplace for Wolfe and her band Lucius as they toured with the legendary Pink Floyd guitarist while also supporting their all-acoustic album “Nudes.” Now they’re playing with rock band Portugal. The Man as they roll into Queens.
amNewYork caught up with Wolfe to discuss the tour.
2016’s electro-pop album “Good Grief” helped really push the band’s sound. What made you decide to do a stripped down follow-up with “Nudes”?
We call this our two-and-a-half album. We‘ve been on the road with Roger Waters and we wanted to make sure we were still connecting with our own fans. There’s always a special moment in each of our shows where we strip everything away. And it’s always a tender way to connect with our crowd. We wanted to recreate that cherished moment in record form.
You mentioned touring with Roger. How did that come about and what’s the experience been like?
He’s one of those guys who never settles for just OK. For his audience, he really cares how it feels. We were only supposed to sing on a couple songs of his set. When we got to rehearsal he looked over with approval and we sat down to hear him play the other songs. Halfway through the first verse he stopped and looked over at us and said, “Man up!”
And we’re like, “Oh no, we’re not singing on this song.” and he just yelled back to the [tour manager], “They’re on every song.” And we just went with it.
You guys really put the work in to be where you are today. What’s a memory from your days on the road that really stands out?
The first time we really played South by Southwest. We had gone there [before] and kind of sang on tabletops, done whatever we could to get a slot at a cafe or whatever. But the first time we actually had a gig, we were singing at St. David’s Cathedral and I don’t know what it was about that moment, but you could hear a pin drop. It was a completely packed house and we were just completely in our element. We got a record deal after that performance. It just felt like magic. [We were] where we were supposed to be at that moment.
If you go: Lucius is performing on Saturday at 5 p.m. with Portugal. The Man, Jungle and Hobo Johnson and the Lovemakers at Forest Hills Stadium, 1 Tennis Place, Forest Hills, foresthillsstadium.com, $37.50-$77.50
