Noah Kahan may be “in the business of losing your interest,” but he certainly wasn’t losing any attention at Thursday night’s show at the Pavilion at Star Lake.
The sold-out venue was filled to the brim with fans of all ages — most of which were dressed in planned outfits comparable to those seen at Taylor Swift’s Eras tour.
Floral and flannel abound, and fans sang along to Kahan word for word, sometimes taking over the vocals from Kahan altogether.
Kahan opened the 18th show of his We’ll All Be Here Forever North American tour with his hit “Dial Drunk.”
The crowd exploded as the artist yelled his hellos between verses with an almost childlike excitement.
He started the set out with some of his heavy hitters including “Everywhere, Everything,” “New Perspective” and “Paul Revere.” He sprinkled in some of his earlier works, such as his 2019 “False Confidence,” and his 2021 song “Godlight.”
The show presented a setlist cultivated across Kahan’s discography, including albums “I Was/I Am,” “Busyhead,” “Stick Season (Forever)” — it’s the sister to the original “Stick Season” — and unreleased songs.
Kahan also performed some of his new songs found on the extended version of the “Stick Season” album, “Stick Season (We’ll All Be Here Forever).”
Kahan interacted with the audience throughout the concert, weaving self-deprecating humor with gracious thanks to his fans and the band supporting him.
Before his performance of “New Perspective,” he revealed that his mother is from Pittsburgh.
“My mom is from Pittsburgh,” the “Homesick” singer said. “She says ‘yinz’… I hope that she’d be proud that I’m performing here tonight.”
He remained personable while poking fun at the audience and including them in a few inside jokes.
The 18-song set list included “All My Love,” which he jokingly dedicated to children of divorce saying “It’s not your fault. It’s daddy’s fault. Every time. Without fail.”
Before performing his unreleased song “The Great Divide,” he threw a shout-out to Club Penguin, a video game forum that many of his fans grew up playing.
“I have terrible posture,” Kahan admitted. “It’s probably from years of playing Club Penguin as a child. I was building my igloo with my parents’ hard-earned money.”
During an emotional moment in the show, Kahan dedicated his song “You’re Gonna Go Far” to those brave enough to stray from the status quo.
“Once you realize you can do whatever you want by yourself, the whole world opens up for you,” Kahan said. “I’m proud of all of you who do things alone. This song is for you.”
To include everyone in the show, Kahan moved mid-show to a stage in the middle of the venue, giving fans in lawn seats a view of his set. He performed “Growing Sideways” and “Strawberry Wine” from it. The latter moved the audience to raise their flashlights and sway with the ballad.
Kahan finished out his regular setlist with “She Calls Me Back,” “Call Your Mom,” “Orange Juice” and “Northern Attitude.”
Not one to leave his fans unsatisfied, Kahan returned to the stage after a wardrobe change to perform hits “The View Between Villages” and “Stick Season” all while wearing a Pittsburgh Pirates jersey.
Opener Ryan Beatty performed eight songs including two originals, “White Teeth” and “Bruises Off The Peach,” from his 2023 album Calico, and two covers including Dolly Parton’s “Do I Cross Your Mind” and Brooks and Dunn’s “Neon Moon.”
