Concert Reviews

The Melbourne-based singer-songwriter brought a strong set of indie rock to Roadrunner to promote her new album “Creature of Habit.”

Australian singer-songwriter Courtney Barnett may have been far from home Wednesday night at Roadrunner, but her fans gave her a warm New England welcome.

“We love you, Courtney!” one crowd member shouted. “The Celtics suck, but you sure don’t!”

The Melbourne-based indie rock musician is on tour to promote “Creature of Habit,” her fourth studio album. “Stay in Your Lane,” the album’s opening track, proved to be an equally effective kickoff to her live set.

Barnett seemed eager to put on a no-nonsense show and let her music do the talking. Aside from thanking the crowd and her band a few times, she kept the stage banter to a minimum through a brisk 70-minute set.

For some artists, the lack of talk might have come across as disinterest, but for Barnett, it seemed a sign of focus and commitment. Anchored by bassist Bones Sloane and drummer Stella Mozgawa, she deftly juggled her vocals and stage presence with intricate guitar arrangements.

“Creature of Habit” was naturally the focus of Wednesday’s set, but Barnett struck a healthy balance between cuts from that album and established hits like “Avant Gardener” and “Depreston.” On new songs like “Mantis” and “Sugar Plum,” she showed that her quirky, rambling lyrical style is still at full force.

“You’re either drowning in the deepest sea / Or drowning in the kitchen sink / Either way, it all feels like drowning,” she sang on “Sugar Plum.”

Barnett paired these lyrics with her trademark deadpan vocals, letting her guitar do more of the melodic heavy lifting. This style drew more attention both to her lyrics and her instrumentals, especially on “Small Poppies” and “Elevator Operator.”

After closing her main set with “One Thing at a Time,” Barnett came back to perform a solo rendition of “Mostly Patient” which showed off her fingerstyle guitar chops. Finally, Sloane and Mozgawa returned to the stage for a finale of “Pedestrian at Best” and “Nobody Really Cares If You Don’t Go to the Party,” both from her debut studio album, “Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit.”

Brooklyn-based indie rock band Momma opened for Barnett in their final of four East Coast shows on her tour. This was the band’s second time playing Roadrunner this year after performing at Something in the Way Fest 2026.

Momma swung through the same songs they played at that January festival performance, most of which came from “Welcome to My Blue Sky,” their fourth studio album. This time around, they added “Bang Bang” and “Bottle Blonde” into their set.

West Coast musician Truman Sinclair also performed, drawing heavily on the paths paved by folk rock giants such as Neil Young and Bob Dylan. Sinclair and his backing band were clearly ecstatic to be opening for Barnett, and they relished every moment of their rollicking set.

Setlist for Courtney Barnett at Roadrunner Boston, May 13, 2026

• Stay in Your Lane
• City Looks Pretty
• Avant Gardener
• Small Poppies
• Mantis
• Site Unseen
• Great Advice
• Depreston
• Elevator Operator
• Sugar Plum
• Wonder
• Before You Gotta Go
• Write a List of Things to Look Forward to
• One Thing at a Time

Encore

• Mostly Patient
• Pedestrian at Best
• Nobody Really Cares If You Don’t Go to the Party

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