Saturday Night Live music: Lorde performs ‘Green Light,’ ‘Liability’

It’s been a few years now since Lorde performed on Saturday Night Live, but with her having a new album coming out, this marked a chance for her to come back to the show in order to perform her new single “Green Light.” She took to the stage at around 9:10 p.m. Eastern for a performance that we’d called impassioned and then so. She went hard when it comes to her stage presence and getting into the music, and that’s something we really do appreciate. The more you get into the music, easily the more interesting it is to watch back. This would’ve looked really awkward without the band, so we’re very happy that they were around her for most of this.

We will say that we’ve never been the biggest fan in the world of Lorde’s music, so going into this episode, it feels fair to say that we did have some reservations about whether or not this was going to be up our alley. Musically, though, it may be Lorde’s strongest song yet. It was hard melodically to appreciate “Royals” from this vantage point, but “Green Light” has a good hook. Also, you can tell immediately just how much it means to her.

If Lorde continues to give performances like this — even if we’re sure that the movement was distracting for some people out there — she will continue to be asked back time and time again. We figure that it could happen the very next time she’s got an album.

Second performance – This song was entitled “Liability,” and in terms of being emotional, this easily took the cake. This was one of the biggest ballads that we’re heard her do, as she sat on the other side of her pianist and sang a tale of heartache and woe.

This was as good of an example of Lorde as a performer we’ve heard, especially in terms of connecting to your audience. You can tell that was was connected to the song, and that’s a part of the reason why it is good sometimes to get away from the spotlight for a little while. It helps you grow and find yourself as a performer before coming back.

For some other news when it comes to tonight’s episode, head over here to read our full review.

What did you think about this performance from Lorde? Share now in the comments below! (Photo: NBC.)