I was excited to settle down and witness what I considered one of POP Montreal 2024's strongest bookings — London-born producer, songwriter and DJ Nabihah Iqbal, here to perform songs from her 2023 debut Dreamer. The vulnerability of Iqbal's voice, entwined with the rhythmic impulses of her compositions were sure to captivate the audience of a festival whose musical inspiration meets at the intersection of Iqbal's clear-eyed genre fusion. From the first touches of synth, Iqbal's spell was cast.
The intimate setting (helped by the Rialto's rich lighting) helped Iqbal access a subtler depth as she launched into "Dreamer" and "This World Couldn't See Us," leaving the crowd lost in a reverie of active, trance-like appreciation. Iqbal's dreamy, post-punk-meets-pop musings and spoken word sections were effortlessly blended, engaging her music in a new way. It felt like discovering the album all over again, everything bathed in a new light.
With guitar work and percussive touches that were much less subtly deployed than they are on-record, Iqbal still managed to capture the hazy atmosphere of Dreamer — melancholic, spectral voice and all — while folding in new textures. Iqbal closed the show with some older songs like "Zone 1 to 6000" before gracing the audience with a more energetic DJ set to open for Ouri in a smaller room in the same building. It felt like a true encapsulation of what POP Montreal is all about.