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Gig Review: SOLANGE at Metro Theatre

Image owned by @chrissy_music

Many of us struggle with sibling rivalry. As the youngest of four I believe the only way to set yourself apart is to be different. Solange Knowles emphasises this belief with every note, lyric and body roll she makes. The girl's got rhythm.

Taking to a sold out Metro Theatre on January 8th, The younger Knowles sister looked the epitome of cool with her floor length braids, green jumpsuit and killer moves. Opening with Don't Let Me Down from her most notable release True, Solange paired her soothing vocals with the hippest of dance moves which got the crowd on board right from the get-go.

The production from Dev Hynes (AKA Lightspeed Champion, Blood Orange) bled through every note of every track performed from True. Solange has long since ventured away from the pop-oriented melodies of her debut. Along with the evidently audible guidance from Hynes, she incorporates everything from jazz, funk, hip hop and soul in to her works. Her energetic delivery of these masterpieces kept her going for an hour. She greeted us with a number of hits from her 2008 album Sol-Angel & The Hadley St Dreams, semi-recent EP True and, for only the second time live, she let loose with her new single Cash In to which the crowd was incredibly receptive.

Solange is an absolute delight to watch in action. She turned the Metro into grind central with her enthusiastic encouragement for the audience to dance along with her. She also interacted with her fans, collecting gifts and flowers from those in the front row. Constantly vibing off the audience, she actually climbed down off the stage to meet them during her final song. Her synchronised dance moves with her band and frequent jokes about her sweat patches gave the opportunity to further let her easy-going nature shine through. Bey might be a diva, Solange is definitely not.

The stand out tracks from the night were T.O.N.Y and Sandcastle Disco. Both songs concluded to applause of undeniable adoration from the crowd. The inescapable rhythms along with the liveliness and moxie of the performer meant there wasn't a sweat-less brow in sight. Just as it should be.


Queen Bey? I think not. All hail Queen Sol!

Image owned by @bridgetwatt

SETLIST
Don't Let Me Down
Some Things Never Seem To Fucking Work
T.O.N.Y
Cash In
Locked In Closets
Sleep In The Park
Lovers In The Parking Lot
Losing You
Encore
Cosmic Journey
Stillness Is The Move (Dirty Projectors)
Sandcastle Disco

Gig Review: TOM ODELL at Metro Theatre

image courtesy of emmawiepkng

January 2nd 2014, I had the pleasure of ringing in the new year at Sydney's Metro Theatre with BRIT award winner Tom Odell.

The gig was phenomenal. Odell and his band have absolutely perfected the art of performing. Seated at his piano, the English born singer/songwriter sailed through a 45 minute set list that varied in genre from pop, to gospel and blues so effortlessly you would presume he had been in the game longer than his mere 23 years of age would allow. 

The set opened with a crowd favourite Grow Old With Me. Odell's melodies and romanticised lyricism had the audience enthralled. He energetically continued through most of his repertoire including tracks from both his EP Another Love and recent album release Long Way Down. The set list included a cover of The Beatles' Oh Darling and Muddy Waters' Just Want To Make Love To You. Both covers were a bold move by the young artist however he successfully pulled them off with finesse and poise.

I'd like to make special mention of the band that accompanied Tom Odell on stage. It was clear that they have been playing together for a long time. Their talent complemented each other and their on-stage banter entertained the crowd. The bassist, guitarist and drummer all received solo opportunities and at the end all four performers on stage took a bow together. It was nice to see a solo artist pay such homage to his fellow musicians who were also clearly his friends.

Tom Odell has a definite flair for live performance. His raw talent is a game changer for this industry where lip-syncing and auto-tune are now common place. If you have the chance to witness this prodigy live, I really suggest you take it.

image courtesy of phamoustk

Set list

Grow Old With Me

Can't Pretend

Sirens

Sense

I Know

Oh Darling

Till I Lost

Supposed To Be

Another Love

Hold Me

(Encore)

Gone At Last

See If I Care

Just Want To Make Love To You

Cruel

 

Gig Review: Lorde at Metro Theatre

Last night I was lucky to attend one of two sold out shows to see the dame de jour Lorde at Sydney’s Metro Theatre.

The little lady took the stage at about 10pm playing a modest 45minute set.  Whilst I did expect it would be this length as she only has the one album and one EP, I was hoping her youthful energy would permit her to play a little longer. Maybe it was past her bedtime?

Lorde (real name Ella Yelich-O'Connor) took to the stage in a curve hugging sultry red number with her statement locks flying free. I must give props to the girl for performing under all that hair! She was joined on stage by only a drummer and a guy on Synth.

She opened with my personal favourite Bravado from The Love Club EP. I had my reservations about her performance going in as she is only 16 and hasn’t been in the game very long. She proved me wrong. Ella definitely holds her own. She has a very… original way of moving. Whenever there was a heavy bass presence she looked something like a zombie marionette. 

A little bit of this…

Mixed with this...

I joke but I am actually really impressed by her originality. It’s nice to see a female artist not giving in to the societal pressures of twerking.

Her performance drove the crowd wild. She had a few die-hard fans in the front row who didn’t want it to end. She sailed through a mixture of tracks from her EP and her eagerly anticipated debut Heroine including Biting down, Glory & Gore, Tennis Court and of course Royals. Disappointingly she didn’t do Team, which is getting a lot of airplay right now. 

Lorde completed her set sans encore. I had previously heard that she is not in favour of them and I have to agree. They are a great opportunity for artists to sneak off for a quick coke-break if required but otherwise I say just get on with the show. As long as their absence doesn't reduce the duration of the set I am happy to hear everything in one go.

There is no doubt why this young woman is one of the most talked about artists of 2013. Watching that 16 year old's entrancing performance has made me reflect on how little I have achieved in my 24 years. I may always resent you for that one Ella.

AlunaGeorge at Sydney's Oxford Art Factory - October 3rd

So I headed down to Sydney's Oxford Art Factory last night with some friends to catch my current obsession AlunaGeorge live.
The London duo didn't take the stage till 11.30 (by which time the stream of Vodka, Lime and soda's had started to take affect). The pair opened with Just A Touch (if I remember correctly) before blasting us with their new single Best Be Believing.

As they only have one studio album out at the moment I was pretty sure I would get to hear majority of my favourite tracks and I think they basically played the whole of Body Talk, including their cover of Montell Jordan's 90's hit This Is How We Do It. They even appropriately changed the line to "Sydney does it like nobody does"... the crowd ate that shit up! I secretly love it when bands do that. I feel so included! =)

Thankfully they also graced us with a performance of the Disclosure track that they feature on 'White Noise'... NAILED IT!


I apologise for the quality of the photos. Unfortunately an amateur with an iPhone in a dark crowded room is not conducive to creating a masterpiece.

If you have a chance to see them live I really recommend it. Aluna is bangin' and George is talented as fuck.

Gig Review - Owl Eyes

I received the pleasure of an invitation to the Australian Spotify One Year Anniversary party at their HQ in Sydney tonight.

Aside from the free booze, popcorn and hotdogs the highlight of the night by far was a sultry performance from Brooke Addamo AKA Owl Eyes.

She opened the performance with the title track from her new album Nightswim followed by my personal favourite Hurricane and her popular single Closure (which I featured on my blog last week). However, for me the standout song of the evening was Jewels & Sapphires. Brooke was majestic, specifically in her delivery of the line “I never want it to end”…. #goosebumps!
She closed with Golden Lies which really got people moving… an excellent finale.

Listen to Jewels & Sapphires here: https://soundcloud.com/thisisowleyes/jewels-sapphires-1

Can’t wait to see her live again. =)

Gig Review: The Rubens

GIG REVIEW

The Rubens - Enmore Theatre May 25th


As a previous skeptic to the unbelievable talent of these four west Sydney boys I have to admit that their debut release more than won me over.

I saw their live show for the first time on Saturday night at one of my favourite venues the Enmore Theatre. And whilst it was thoroughly enjoyable it came in short of blowing me away. Musically the band of Margin brothers and childhood mate Scott performed to perfection. There was even a spectacular light show, quite fitting for Vivid Festival that commenced in Sydney the previous night. A great addition to the gig.

My only real criticism is the less-than-animated approach the guys take to actually performing their incredible catalog. As an audience member I often find it difficult to get enthusiastic during a gig if the band themselves don’t seem to be.

Perhaps it was nerves at playing a hometown gig where the patrons include a good deal of family and friends, perhaps it was laziness, personal opposition or even inebriation. What ever the reason it brought my rating down from ‘Absolutely Excellent’ to ‘Really Quite Great’.

Regardless, these guys have got the ability to become one of Australia’s iconic bands if they want to be, they’ve got the talent and the following. And with a sold out national tour practice is sure to make perfect.