Over the past three years, alt-pop singer Remi Wolf has played about 300 shows. She appears completely at home in the spotlight, using the stage as a place for restless visceral expression of music. During Wolf’s sold-out show at Palace Theatre in St. Paul on Wednesday evening, she connected with the crowd not just with irresistibly danceable tracks and cheeky moves, but also with down-to-earth and welcoming conversation.

The crowd’s barking began for opener Lava La Rue (AKA Ava Laurel), to which the London-based singer and guitarist asked if the Remi Wolf fan base should be called “the wolf pack.” Laurel’s set came replete with the funk, grunge rock, and dance music found on their debut album, STARFACE, out this past July. The songs feature themes of everyday compilations about our current time period and the technology that surrounds us.

They detailed distrust in the government by singing, “Capital city is busy tacklin' with me / Actual pity stops me from acting quickly / ‘Economically Loos’ with the truth / They're swindling scandals, the man in the suit,” on “Change.” The song “Poison Cookie” about our acceptance of digital surveillance included, “There's a shadow / Watching all your steps and your thoughts / In the abyss of one mind it explores / The digital frontier astronaut.” Laurel didn’t just sing; they rapped while playing guitar before launching into choruses on “Manifestation Manifesto.”

Wednesday was Lava La Rue’s first time in Minnesota. To honor Prince, they wore a piece of homemade merch with purple sleeves. “This is the closest I’ll ever be to where Prince was,” they said.

Wolf also celebrated a new release in July: her sophomore album, Big Idea. While her debut album, the quirky pop and R&B collection Juno, served clever lines and sometimes hid behind humor, her newest release unearths clearer narratives at times. Take the psychedelic-funk track “Cinderella,” when she asks, “Is there something wrong with the way I'm designed? / Can't find comfort in anything, yeah / Should I change, should I leave myself behind / And buy a boat to a private island?” Her answer to herself in the next couplets, paraphrased, is “You got this.”

One of the most intimate moments of the show was her explanation of “Motorcycle,” a ballad with smooth acoustic guitars. She said she wrote it about the recurring theme of living in a mental duality of the desire to be a housewife who has simple duties like cooking and cleaning, or, smoking cigarettes, drinking whiskey, and throwing up.

Wolf’s on-stage energy was infectious. Backed by six musicians, she commanded the space confidently with a free spirit and “dance like no one’s watching” mentality. The artist skipped around, jumped, kicked feet high in unison with Conor Malloy’s drum crashes, continually flashed theatrical facial expressions, and occasionally flicked her tongue. To mix things up, the band played “Sexy Villain” from Juno in a completely different style from the studio version. Like on their Tiny Desk episode released last week, the band turned the sultry track into bossa nova, including Malloy with shakers.

Wolf also gave new life to a cover of “Life Is a Highway” by Tom Cochrane. The early ‘90s track could be called the show’s thesis: carefree fun. While Wolf added a pop flare and impressive vocal range to Cochrane’s hit, revived by Rascal Flatts on Disney’s Cars soundtrack, assistants waved a large (new) Minnesota state flag and Pride flag.

The North Star state was a recurring focus throughout the night. Early in the show, Wolf announced, “I made these pants just for today,” then showed off “ST PAUL SO FIRE” written on the waist of her pants. She also shared that the catchy single “Kangaroo,” about recognizing a partner’s flaws when the honeymoon phase ends, is about someone from Minnesota. “Dumb snow bunny / Will you hold me in your hands?,” she sang. “You sound funny / Talking my big ideas.” Now the lyrics make sense. She asked, “Do y’all still believe in Santa here?” suggesting Minnesotans need comfort from the mythical character in the winter months. And if you think the rock ballad “Alone in Miami” has nothing to do with our state, think again. “If Minnesota is the ‘yin,’ [‘Alone in Miami’] is the ‘yang,”’ she said. “This place is Florida.” A compliment?

Let’s not forget the loon segment of the show. After Wolf and Malloy tried to make loon calls sound with their hands, they recruited a fan on stage to show them how it’s done. Wolf used the bird bit as a gateway to introduce a new challenge: writing a new song for each show. With a crowd note suggestion of G major, the band jumped right into an improv jam, and Wolf sang a love song about loons.

Palace Theatre was Wolf’s fourth stop on her current tour, and the freshness of some tracks became clear when the band had to stop and restart during three songs. Yet, these instances could be easily overlooked given how successfully entertaining and lively the show turned out. The band encored with “Photo ID,”  the single that put Wolf on the map and circled back to the evening’s objective of carefree fun and liberation. “Wait in line, smile for the photo,” Wolf sang. “Inside, that's where we can be free.”

Remi Wolf

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Lava La Rue

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Setlist (via setlist.fm)

Cherries & Cream

Cinderella

Pitiful

Liz

Kangaroo

Alone in Miami

Sexy Villain

Anthony Kiedis

Life is a Highway (Tom Cochrane cover)

Loon (Improv Song)

Wave

Motorcycle

Cake

Toro

Disco Man

Soup

Encore

Photo ID