Dominic Harrison—better known as YUNGBLUD—is the kind of artist that demands your immediate attention one way or another, whether it’s because of the kind of chaotic, frenzied energy he emits during any given show or due to the fact that he’s walked out onstage in a satin black slip paired with a sheer polka dot top, bubblegum pink socks and chunky creepers.
The British pop-punk and hip-hop (and everything in between) powerhouse made his Milwaukee debut Wednesday, July 3, at Summerfest’s Miller Lite Oasis Stage. Though he’s only been releasing music under the aforementioned moniker for about three years, he’s already figured out the algorithm for a buzzworthy performance, the kind that people will continue to talk about for years to come—“Remember that part where YUNGBLUD tossed his mic stand to the side and planted a huge kiss on his guitarist? Or when he pulled a corner of his underwear and rubbed his ass cheek all over the live videographer’s camera lens?”
It’s all in the same vein as punk-rock but not in a played-out piss and vinegar kind of way. It’s a less threatening, more hyperexcitable offshoot in the form of a 21-year-old that just keeps lifting up the skirt of his dress, his free hand gesturing “up yours” and his tongue out the entire time as he charges through his opening song, the title track off of 2019’s 21st Century Liability. He kept the momentum going by following up with the energizer, “I Love You, Will You Marry Me,” a cross between sped-up dub-rock and what could pass as a cut from an early Arctic Monkeys record.
“Goddamn, man! Do you realize how crazy it is for us to come all the way out here... and hear you singing along to every single fucking song,” he told his audience.
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The heavy fog at the lakefront that night was no match for his riotous spirit. He carried along with songs from his debut EP (“King Charles,” “Tin Pan Boy”), crowd favorites like “Psychotic Kids” and “California,” as well as “Polygraph Eyes,” what the singer has cited as a story based on the assault of a close friend, and a commentary on lad (or bro) culture (“If you ever see anyone out there getting taken advantage of, you say something. No means fucking no, man,” said Harrison), proving there’s much more to his unrestrained, boisterous persona, and that he certainly lives up to the hype.
