Crying under the stars is about to become an official Columbus activity. COSI is hosting exclusive listening parties for Phoebe Bridgers’ Lost Weekend, pairing an early listen of the album with an immersive planetarium show that feels tailor-made for her music.
The science center is hosting exclusive listening parties for Lost Weekend, Bridgers’ first solo album since 2020, before it’s released anywhere else in the world.
Inside COSI’s planetarium, the album will be paired with a custom visual show created by internationally renowned night-sky photographer Babak Tafreshi. You’ll see breathtaking views of the Northern Lights, star-filled skies, and landscapes from around the world, all projected across the dome while you hear the album from start to finish.
Honestly, it sounds like the most Phoebe Bridgers way possible to debut an album.
The listening parties are happening as part of a global partnership between Spotify and Bridgers, with just over 40 planetariums around the world participating. COSI is one of only a handful of Midwest locations selected.
There is one catch, though. This is a completely device-free event. Phones and smartwatches will be locked away in Yondr pouches before guests enter the theater, so everyone gets the same uninterrupted first listen. No texting. No filming. No scrolling. Just you, the music, and however many feelings Phoebe decides to inflict on you.
It’s also worth noting that this is not a concert.
Bridgers won’t be at COSI, and there won’t be a live performance. This is simply a chance to hear Lost Weekend before its official release while surrounded by an immersive planetarium show designed specifically for the album.
COSI will host performances at 6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on Monday, August 10; Wednesday, August 12; and Friday, August 14. Tickets are limited, so if you’ve been counting down the days until Lost Weekend drops, you may want to grab yours before they’re gone. For more info, head over to cosi.org/lost-weekend.
Not able to make it to COSI?
Columbus fans have another option. Local record shop Lost Weekend Records is also hosting an official midnight listening party when the album drops on August 13, joining hundreds of independent record stores around the world celebrating the release.
If the planetarium experience isn’t your thing, hearing the album surrounded by fellow fans at one of the city’s favorite record shops sounds like a pretty great Plan B.
Featured image by David Lee, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0).
