On the back of one of the better albums released this year, Ruby Gill played their third show in Sydney in the past six months and managed to deliver an incredibly authentic and flawless set to a packed out Trocadero Room. Not even 4 months after releasing her second album Some Kind Of Control, Ruby’s return to Sydney was accompanied by opener Betty, a self-described folk-soul artist who delivered a clean and clear 30 minute support slot. With a sound bordering on jazz, the imagery invoked from their simple acoustics and masterful lyrics was something that made the set easy to enjoy. While I wasn’t familiar with their music prior to the night, Betty’s tracks “Devote” and closer “Go Take a Bath” both proved to be set highlights while their effortless delivery left the room glad they’d all made it down early for the show’s opening.
Trekking across the country in support of Some Kind Of Control, Ruby entered the stage for her headline slot a little after 9pm and promptly began a near one-hour set that could be one of the more honest and funny sets I’ve seen this year. With a setlist that naturally favoured and leaned into her newer material, Ruby opened the night on the keys with “Under the Flying Foxes on the Last Night of Summer”, a subtle and beautiful four minutes that not only sets the tone for the album, but evidently did the same for the set.
Moving away from the keys and onto the guitar with “Space Love”, Ruby noted it is a song about being locked down during Covid with someone she didn’t necessarily want to be locked down with. Which is, all things considered, completely warranted. Following up “Space Love” with the album titular “Some Kind of Control”, Ruby joked about how her guitar was on its last legs after travelling across the country and Europe with her and probably only had one song left in it (it sounded fine to me tbh).
While her sound is for the most part bordering on acoustic, the slightest use of percussion on her albums does separate her live show from her recordings. While not a negative, it does provide a different interpretation to most of her material, providing a more introspective delivery for the most part. I noted in my review of Some Kind of Control back at the time of its release that Ruby has some of the best song titles going around, and this was evident on “How Chimpanzees Reassure Each Other”, with the wistful chorus lifting the song, while the undertones of anger on “To What Do I Owe My Pleasure” was evident throughout its run.
After following her music since her earliest single “Your Mum” in 2018, this show was the first time I’d managed to catch Ruby live. And she didn’t fail to impress. Her wit, humour and honesty sets the tone for her live shows and definitely made the room feel like a safe and inviting space for those in attendance. Announcing that “Room Full of Human Male Politicians” was probably her funniest song (‘because its the most fucked up’), the middle stages of the set were filled with spoken word interpretations of her songs “Throw Your Lucky Coins on Me” and “I’m Not Exaggerating When I Say” (‘I honestly couldn’t be bothered re-learning them’).
Playing a new song “Fishing is Not About Fishing”, it touches on her relationship with her dad and the activities parents undertake to get closer to their children. Bringing her humour back into the set, Ruby spoke on the overwhelming and enthusiastic support her mum has for Ruby’s career, love life and queerness; all delivered with a dry sense of humour and self-deprecation.
The set peaked on “You Should Do This For A Living”, as she welcomed the crowd to deliver the backing vocals over the song’s bridge. It was simple but incredibly forceful, effective and on-point. Closing the set with “Touch Me There” and the lovely “Emmagen Creek” (after telling another great yarn about the characters you come across while travelling the country), Ruby thanked the crowd for coming and left those in attendance happy and enlightened on a bloody cold Sydney Friday night.
Some Kind of Control is one of the best albums of 2025 so far, and Ruby’s set at The Trocadero Room was one of the best I’ve seen in 2025. If you can get around to seeing her while on this album cycle, do your best to do so; it’ll be worth it.
FIVE STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
header image credit: Kira Puru
