Klô Pelgag. Photo by me, 2025.

The pandemic was crummy time for many of us. I spent my days in online classes for grad school and I spent my evenings writing an endless amount of essays. If there was one glimmer of positivity for me, it was that during this time I started listening to Klô Pelgag. In the summer of 2020, she released Notre-Dame-Des-Sept-Douleurs and I was an INSTANT fan.

I had been pining to see her perform for ages, but I was not able to due to sold out shows and that I left Montréal to move back home. I was settled that I’d have to travel back to Montréal to see her…until she announced a show in Toronto in promotion of her new album Abracadabra (2024). My excitement could not be contained. I bought tickets for my partner and myself, and on a hot July day…I finally saw Klô Pelgag live.

Opening for Klô was Sebastian Gaskin, a Toronto based Cree singer-songwriter. He was a terrific opener. His set was comprised of him and his guitar, with a topnotch vocal performance. It reminded me of the basics of what makes music so beautiful: a person with their instrument creating pure art. It’s an incredible thing to bear witness to. This is quite the foreshadowing for Klô’s set!

I had not heard of Sebastian Gaskin before the concert but I follow him now. This is my favourite kind of result for an opener: I discover a new artist that I immediately vibe with. I’ve written about him in this post, so check it out!

Klô came swagged out in an all white outfit with an oversized coat, a flowy top and pants and a black pair of cartoonishly large boots, which complemented the rest of her outfit perfectly. Her band was also dressed in all white, and much of the instrumental setup was white as well. I joked to myself that it was like I was at a cult gathering, in the best way possible. The costuming and setup blends well into her performance style.

Klô Pelgag. Photos by me, 2025.

I was really blown away by Klô’s stage presence. Klô has a clear vision for the kind of show she wants to put on for her audience. Her presence on stage was boisterous and passionate. Dancing, jumping around, moving instrumental setups, and consistent lighting change… saying the performance was “high energy” does not feel like it does enough to describe the feeling of watching her perform.

Even when she plays piano, she is still animated. Below I’ve added two videos from when she performed Mélamine because I thought it perfectly encapsulated her infectious energy and performance style.

Please Note: if you are sensitive to flashing lights, the videos in this post may not be for you.

Klô Pelgag performing Mélamine. Video by me, 2025.

There were times where Klô was laying on the floor with her torso up in the air and singing, in a sort of contorted manner akin to something you would do in Pilates. Yet what I took away was not only her talent but the incredible core strength it takes to do that and to sing at the same time! Her concert was a prime example of witnessing an artist in their element.

Klô Pelgag performing Mélamine. Video by me, 2025.

The songs that Klô primarily performed were, of course, from Abracadabra and Notre-Dame-Des-Sept-Douleurs. Prior to the show, I had Abracadabra on repeat. I had songs I was ready with my whole heart to see perform live, and how lucky for me I got to witness them! Sans visage is one of my favourite songs off the new album, and I got to sing my little heart out. How lucky, indeed, that I got to stand right in front and witness her playing piano and sing at the same time.

Klô Pelgag performing Sans visage. Video by me, 2025.

Much to my surprise, she also performed some songs from L’étoile Thoracique like Les instants d’équilibre. I’m not sure why I didn’t expect her to play those songs but I’m glad she did. The evolution of Klô’s career across her albums show tremendous artistic growth and a constant in her strength as a writer.

Another exciting moment for me as a fan was getting to see songs from Notre-Dame-Des-Sept-Douleurs performed live. That was the record I discovered her through, and I listened to Umami on repeat while working on essays in grad school. I cannot seem to find the words to meaningfully express the special feeling of hearing songs you formed a particular attachment being performed live. It’s reminiscent of being transported back to that time, without all the hangups. Klô’s music, grandiose and poetic as it may be, has a wonderful way of making people feel seen.

Klô Pelgag performing Umami. Video by me, 2025.

The use of lighting was key throughout the concert. It was near gothic in experience. The lighting was tied into the beats of the songs, clearly meant to build and invoke a kind of emotion in the audience based on whatever song was performed. The darkness we stood in combined with the colours created an atmosphere that was either celestial or haunting, sometimes both.

Klô Pelgag performing Rémora. Video by me, 2025.

When she was performing Rémora, I felt like I was in church. The combination of backing vocals, the synth, drumming, and Klô’s singing felt so grand and larger-than-life. The sort of performance a choir would do only at the most important days of the calendar. If anyone has ever told you couldn’t wear white and be gothic, just know they are wrong.

Klô’s show was a reminder that with the proper use of lighting, you can be haunting and build an awe-inspiring set. Having been raised in a devout Catholic household, the parallels were a bit uncanny. I didn’t mind, though, I would gladly attend the gothically-cultish-stylings of a Klô Pelgag show again and again.

Klô Pelgag. Photo by me, 2025.

Though English is not Klô’s first language, I did appreciate her effort to converse with the audience in English. You could tell she was a bit pleasantly surprised to be performing outside of Québec in a major anglophone city. I hope that she still saw the audience’s excitement for having her. My singing is terrible but I did my darndest to sing along and let her know through my own fun that I was so glad she was there.

I think of an interview she did on Tout le monde en parle, where she talks about being shy about speaking English with her Québécois accent. I wished I could hug her and apologize for my terribly anglo accented French. Fortunately, as Klô mentions, Denis Villeneuve already set a stellar example for famous Québecers who work in English. We all try our best in our second language and the effort is what makes one happy. In fact, accents are proof of being bilingual and that should be celebrated.

Klô Pelgag. Photo by me, 2025.

While the show inches closer to the final song, I think about another interview that Klô did with Rolling Stone Québec in November 2024. When talking to the interviewer Marie-Lise Rousseau about performing a new album live, Klô says, “The show offers everything the album can’t. It’s another dimension opening up.” I think she perfectly summarizes the entire act I just experienced: a new world opening up where the only people exist are the ones in the room.

Funny enough, I made a lot of references to church in this post, and in that same interview when Ms. Rousseau states that stage is where artist and fan come together, Klô responds, “There’s a communion unlike anything else in life.” The parallels are perhaps a little more lingering than I initially thought.

Klô Pelgag. Photo by me, 2025

At the end of the evening, I was so sad to be leaving a genuinely fun show. It was worth the long five year wait to see Klô perform. I even left with a purchase of a cool long sleeve shirt and lighter (one side said triste, and the other méchante). I don’t even smoke – I just thought the lighter was cool, haha!

When we left, I told my partner the show was everything I dreamed of and then some. I had an idea of what Klô’s show would be liked based on what friends in the past had told me. I was so jealous that I was never able to attend. But jealousy no more, I stand here now with great pride in being able to say, “I saw Klô Pelgag live!”

Have you ever seen Klô Pelgag perform live? What were your experiences? Let me know in the comments.

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New to the world of Klô Pelgag? You can listen to Abracadabra below.