My favourite showcase returned for round two the other night, bringing with it the music of Ivi, Jenna Murphy and Zana Rose, and Rascals & Runaways. Once again, it was a great night of female talent — the kind of event that doesn’t happen anywhere near often enough.
First on stage was soloist Ivi, a roots-y acoustic guitarist who played just the stuff you’d expect from her: songs about love and heartbreak and the usual. And that was fine — the thing that was most interesting about Ivi was her use of dynamics. Instead of strumming the same few chords for 50 minutes, she alternated between said chords and a generous amount of finger picking, giving her songs a little more depth. Granted, the last couple of songs did still blur together, but “Under Your Influence” and “Long Time Coming” stood out enough to make this forgivable. With a little more experience, Ivi should lose enough of the nerves to be a very enjoyable singer.
Second up was my favourite act of the night: Jenna Murphy, accompanied by Zana Rose. Armed with an acoustic guitar, tambourine, xylophone, and a few other instruments (and not forgetting their impressive voices), the women stamped and sung their way through an impressive set of folky-pop-rock, much to the delight of the audience. Along with their own powerful songs, they pulled out two unexpected yet amusing covers: a mash-up of Nelly’s “Hot In Here” and Kelis’ “Milkshake”, and later, M.I.A.’s “Paper Planes”. Perfect harmonies, interesting instrumentals, and emotionally honest lyrics: they had everything.
Closing the night was the duo Rascals & Runaways. It took me a couple of songs to get into their music, but the soulful rock was definitely unique. Singer Sarah undoubtedly has something of the late Amy Winehouse about her — a rich and throaty voice that complimented the sharp guitar work very well. Their most notable song was “Samba”, which had a brilliant guitar riff, and the whole audience nodding along.
While there was one less performer than last time, the result was a diverse and entertaining night that deserved a greater turnout than it got. Seriously, when are you guys going to catch on?
—
Photo Credit / More Information at http://www.facebook.com/femmelocalesyd
———-
