On May 8, New Zealand indie-rock quartet Yumi Zouma played Outset in Chicago in support of their fifth album, No Love Lost To Kindness. A record the band describes as them “becoming a rock band and leaving dream pop behind,” the live show made that case without any sense of rigidity, the band floating between eras without ever losing the energy that hit the moment they stepped on stage.

Outset was absolutely packed as fans crowded both levels and knew every word regardless of era. That kind of devotion is contagious for a new listener. When hundreds of people around you already love what you’re hearing live for the first time, you lock in differently.

The set opened in Yumi Zouma’s dreamier past before moving through the harder-hitting present, and songs like “Astral Projections,” the closer from 2022’s Present Tense, and “Right Track / Wrong Man” from 2020’s Truth or Consequences struck a chord — the crowd had been singing along all night, but those felt special.

No Love Lost To Kindness is a different animal. At its core, it’s an album about honesty — letting go of being performative to suit others and the version of yourself you’ve outgrown. The guitars and bass sit further forward, the energy swings wider — higher highs and lower lows than anything in their back catalog.

“Bashville on the Sugar” makes that clear from the first note, a frenetic drum and guitar intro before Christie Simpson’s vocals arrive and the energy locks in. The album doesn’t stay in one gear — “Phoebe’s Song” is fun and carefree, with a soft summer feel that could soundtrack a coming-of-age movie, while “Cowboy Without a Clue” lands on a lyric that sticks: all the stupid shit we do to keep my mind away from you. “Drag” came with a quick quip from Christie before they played it — it’s a song about letting go of your own shit — a haunting, buzzy slice of 90s alternative that landed exactly as promised. “Blister” was part of the encore, gritty, noisy and an absolute ball to hear live.

Toronto’s Ducks Ltd. opened and were great in their own right — check out “18 Cigarettes.” See my photos from the show below and stream No Love Lost To Kindness, out now on Nettwerk.

Yumi Zouma

Ducks Ltd.