Melanie Martinez • Men I Trust • May 18, 2024 • Delta Center
Reviewed and Photographed by Kevin Rolfe
Melanie Martinez is a musical force that cannot be stopped. It seems with each tour she gets bigger and bigger. From being a contestant on season 3 of the acclaimed singing show, The Voice to selling out major arenas on her recent Trilogy Tour, Martinez is a force to be reconned with. I had the opportunity to see Melanie on her last stop in Utah on her Portals Tour at the Sandy Amphitheater. I was impressed with her fanbase then, but that was nothing compared to what I saw inside the Delta Center on May 18. The arena was filled with devoted fans dressed up as nymphs, fairies, and baby dolls. Glitter and sparkles were everywhere. Outside of a Taylor Swift Concert, I haven’t seen so many fans dressed up.
The Trilogy Tour is designed to celebrate Melanie Maritnez’s first three albums, Cry Baby, K-12, and Portals. This would be Melanie’s first all-arena tour. I think she might be the first contestant from The Voice to claim that. This review will be a little different. I was able to shoot both Melanie Martinez and her opener, Men I Trust, but due to how extremely sold out this show was, I was not able to receive a review ticket. So I’ll only be able to review what I saw while I was out there taking photos.
Men I Trust
Men I Trust walked out to a loud and supportive ovation. They were set up on stage left and didn’t move much from that location. The Canadian Indie Band brought a cool chill vibe to the show. I thought this was an interesting choice for an opener. The audience was so hyped up, that it seemed like a more upbeat band might have more suited the mood. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that they were a great choice. These fans were going to lose their minds when Melanie Martinez took the stage. They needed a band that could curb their excitement until that moment. Men I Trust sounded great. Emmanuelle Proulx is an amazing vocalist. I could tell she was enjoying the moment. I was excited for them to have this huge opportunity to share their music with this large audience.
Melanie Martinez
So usually when I take photos at a concert I shoot the first three songs. Sometimes that gets shifted around, but it’s usually at the beginning of the concert. For this show, I was approved to shoot during songs 7, 8, and 9. It was a very unique experience seeing a show start and not have my camera out. At the same time, it was interesting to stand at the side of the stage and see the band walk out, the dancers gather behind the stage, and all of the production going on from the tunnel to the stage.
I was able to look around the arena as Melanie Martinez walked out. People were ballistic! The lights shimmered off of their costumes and outfits. Melanie stood at the top of the stage as the concert ensued. My time finally came to take photos. I stood next to a cameraman from the tour who was covered in fake moss to hide himself. My guess is that he didn’t want to distract the fans from what was happening on the stage.
Melanie captivated the audience. The stage was filled with dancers. Many times they surrounded Martinez as she sang and other times she was part of the choreography. The part of the show I saw was from the Cry Baby album. Songs 7, 8, and 9 turned out to be “Pity Party”, “Play Date”, and “Mad Hatter”. The audience was so loud as they sang along to the lyrics “It’s my party and I’ll cry If I want to” as Melanie popped balloons on the stage with an ax.
As my time out in the arena taking photos came to an end and I was escorted back into the tunnel and out of the arena I began to wish that I could stay and see what Melanie Martinez had in store for her other two albums. I can imagine it was equally as impressive as what I saw. I was able to chat with my niece the next day. She was at the concert and she gave me the full rundown of the rest of the show. Her account was glowing and I have no doubt that the rest of the show was amazing.
