On Saturday, human musical group sensations Glass Animals, as they like to call themselves, brought their otherworldly “TOUR OF EARTH” — rich with hypnotic beats and raw lyrics — to the Kia Forum in Inglewood. The English band released their fourth studio album, “I LOVE YOU SO F***ING MUCH,” on July 19, which pairs the complexities of love and relationships with psychedelic production. This album follows the success of the band’s greatest hit, “Heat Waves,” from their highly praised 2020 album “Dreamland.” 

As concert attendees entered the sold-out stadium, they were greeted with a lively and bustling atmosphere. Among the vibrant crowd were friend groups, couples and families, most of whom were dressed in metallic fabrics, glitter face paint or space buns. At 7:45 p.m., alternative indie rock musician Blondshell took the stage as one of the openers of the night. Performing songs from her self-titled debut album “Blondshell,” released in April 2023, she infused the air with angst and tempestuous melodies.

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Next up came indie rock artist Eyedress, who performed his most popular hits like “Jealous” and “Something About You” — some of which have gone viral on TikTok. The audience bounced and grooved to his romantic ballads.

As the stage went dark, concertgoers buzzed with excitement and anticipation. At 9:30 p.m., as the lights began to brighten, the audience was met with a large “I LOVE YOU SO F***ING MUCH” banner on stage, as well as a video of two galaxies conversing with each other on the TV screens.

Fog began to crowd the stage and the video montage took the audience on a journey through space, finally landing on Earth. With dramatic flair, the banner fell to the ground and band members Dave Bayley, Drew MacFarlane, Edmund Irwin-Singer and Joe Seaward stood ready to perform.

Staying true to the extraterrestrial ambiance, the stage was constructed to resemble the inside of a spaceship, with a giant projector screen in the background showing trippy visuals and various colorful strobe lights.

As the crowd roared, the band immediately dove right into “Life Itself,” a mind-bending tune with a distinct percussion inspired by Pakistani Lollywood music. They carried on the energy with “Your Love (Déjà Vu),” “Wonderful Nothing” and “Space Ghost Coast to Coast.”

From the very beginning, the band’s talent for storytelling was evident. Hidden under the synth and techno instrumentals was beautiful lyricism that explored topics such as love, abuse, despair and so much more. Despite being occasionally distracted by lead singer Bayley’s entertaining quips and numerous shoulder rolls, it was clear that emotions were running high in the audience.

During “Creatures in Heaven” — a track that explores the guilt and longing of a past relationship — Bayley echoed the crowd’s energy, remarking, “It’s fucking surreal.”

As the band played the tenth ballad of the night, “Lost in the Ocean” — which Bayley describes as an uplifting and optimistic song — blue and yellow lights illuminated the arena. Unbeknownst to the band, fans had distributed blue and yellow pieces of paper to the entire audience to change the color of their phone flashlights. Within the sea of colorful lights and swaying humans, everything did feel like it would be alright.

After those poignant tracks, Glass Animals reignited the energy with a sensual performance of “Gooey,” followed by a hard hitting rendition of “Take A Slice,” in which MacFarlane shredded on his electric guitar. Having finished “Pork Soda,” Bayley shouted out his bandmates and they all ran off stage together, leaving the audience in darkness.

The TV screens lit up again with the talking galaxies, now complaining about the show being over. The crowd began to chant, “Encore, encore, encore!” and the band returned to perform “Tokyo Drifting,” a hip-hop track featuring Denzel Curry that strays away from the band’s usual sound.

Finally, Bayley and his bandmates delivered the highly anticipated performance of “Heat Waves” to close off the show. As the entire arena sang along, a wave of nostalgia washed over the audience, transporting them back to 2020, when “Dreamland” was released.

As the final beats faded, it was clear that “Heat Waves” was a powerful reminder of the connection and comfort Glass Animals provided throughout the pandemic.

With a big thank you, the band waved to the audience and left the stage for the final time. The visuals zoomed out to space as human musical group sensations Glass Animals boarded their spaceship heading to the next stop of their Earth tour.