Playing For A New Scene: How TikTok Changed Ladytron’s Audience

When Ladytron decided to set out on their latest North American tour, the English electropop band wanted to do things differently. Rather than remain on the road for months on end, the trio booked shorter runs for a couple of weeks interspersed with various breaks.

Following a handful of West Coast dates in May (including a May 10 show at The Neptune in Seattle that sold 1,000 tickets and grossed $33,000), the fall trek kicked off on Sept. 20 at New York City’s Irving Plaza, with stops including Los Angeles, San Diego, Austin, Dallas and Houston before wrapping up on Nov. 19 with an appearance at Corona Capital in Mexico City. The tour celebrated the band’s new album, Time’s Arrow, released in January via Cooking Vinyl.

“In the old days, we’d be on a tour bus for eight weeks,” Daniel Hunt, who plays synthesizers, guitar and bass, tells Pollstar. “We prefer to take it easy, go and play maybe three or four shows in succession. It takes a little longer to get around, but it’s better for everyone. The shows [have] slightly more of a sense of occasion to them, for me. They feel bigger than they did during the 2019 tour, because that tour got cut in half because of the pandemic.”

As the England-born band reflects on their newly wrapped North American dates, the members emphasize that the continent is one of their favorite places to play. They find the crowds to be more involved, particularly in Mexico City.

“I think North American crowds are probably the best,” lead singer Helen Marnie says. “A mixture of people come see us. We’ve garnered a younger audience recently in North America, you get the kids that come out and they’re so excited. I love that because that’s what I want when I’m on stage. I want a reaction to being up there. When you get that back, it makes such a difference, rather than people being a bit hip and a bit cool, listening and scratching their chin.

“Los Angeles was good, because the kids were into it. Mexico City, as well, has always been great to us. They appreciate the music in a slightly different way; it’s more chaotic. People kind of lose themselves a bit more freely. Those are our two best audiences.”

The group, which formed in Liverpool more than 20 years ago and is represented by Wasserman Music, also features Mira Aroyo on synthesizers and vocals. In March Ladytron announced that Reuben Wu, who played synthesizers, had departed the band because he couldn’t “commit to a touring group whilst also pursuing a career in the visual arts on the other side of the world.” The band assured fans that its plans were not affected and, “Work has already begun on the follow up to Time’s Arrow. The show goes on.”

The band is back to working on new music and recently released their first Christmas single, “All Over By Xmas.” Ladytron will return to the road with performances in the UK starting at Century Hall in Manchester on Jan. 26.

Now, with their 2002 single “Seventeen” having a revival thanks to TikTok traction, their audience has changed significantly. While those who supported the band in their earlier days are still around, a new generation, primarily consisting of younger girls, have started to come out to the shows.

“We’ve been doing this a long time,” Marnie says. “So, that means everyone that is along the ride with you is your age or older. I think for a period of what was happening, and you’d see it in the crowds, it would be slightly older guys. Now, it has definitely changed. There’s a lot of younger girls and guys. I would say a lot more girls who are at the gigs. I really do enjoy the injection of youth, it makes things fun. And that’s what you want, people of all ages to appreciate your [music].”

In Ladytron’s early days, it took a while to get to the point of touring the United States. They initially wanted to head over to the U.S. after releasing their debut album, 604, in 2001. However, their label suggested they hold off until the release of second album Light & Magic in 2002.

“We didn’t get to play the States until early 2003,” Hunt says. “So, we’d been going for about four years by that point. That tour was special. We’d never seen our audience before. In those days, social media didn’t exist and you didn’t know what your audience looked like. It sounds strange now, but when we went out to the States for the first time, it felt like the first time we’d actually met our audience properly.”

Throughout Ladytron’s career, the band has aimed to perform in new territories. They were one of the first of their genre to play in Colombia, with peers asking them about the experience upon their return. Now, the country is a premier market within the entertainment industry.

The band also played China, a country where very few artists traveled to play in the early 2000s.

“In fact, almost nobody had,” Hunt says. “These kinds of experiences felt like we were going to places where people didn’t usually play, or hadn’t played a lot. They were quite rewarding. We felt like pioneers or something.”

There are numerous countries the band still hopes to play, dreaming of continuing their pioneering spirit. However, for now, they’re looking forward to returning home in the new year.

“Hometown shows are always special,” Hunt says. “I can play in London to twice as many people, and the show in Liverpool is still better.”