Cate Le Bon has a
clarification to make: contrary to received Twitter wisdom, she is
neither German, nor a Viking. We don’t know the context to these
misattributions, but we’d guess the former stems from her bewitching
vocal style; while Welsh vowels make her real home unmistakable, there’s
something in her pitch reminiscent of Nico, albeit with the Warhol
icon’s austerity replaced by genteel warmth and a fine-line in
lightly-weird alt-folk. Nae idea about the Viking reference, though…
Mike Hadreas of Perfume Genius is a somewhat more reserved stage presence. Flanked by two additional musicians tonight, he has little to say between songs (“I mean, I’m happy to be here, I just don’t have any anecdotes” he endearingly explains after one abandoned attempt at audience interaction), but everything to say within them. Listening to such nakedly exposed song-writing feels almost voyeuristic, with the performance’s air of intimacy emphasised by pin-drop stillness from the crowd.
The only exceptions to the silence come when members of the congregation pipe up and quietly join in – an innocuous act that takes on vulgar shades when the sing-alongs involve such hauntingly personal confessionals as Dark Parts’ abuse-narrative. Of course, to label such quiet murmurings ‘vulgar’ is ludicrously over-sensitive, but heightened emotions are precisely Perfume Genius’s forte; that we spot more than one fan dabbing away tears comes as no surprise.
Mike Hadreas of Perfume Genius is a somewhat more reserved stage presence. Flanked by two additional musicians tonight, he has little to say between songs (“I mean, I’m happy to be here, I just don’t have any anecdotes” he endearingly explains after one abandoned attempt at audience interaction), but everything to say within them. Listening to such nakedly exposed song-writing feels almost voyeuristic, with the performance’s air of intimacy emphasised by pin-drop stillness from the crowd.
The only exceptions to the silence come when members of the congregation pipe up and quietly join in – an innocuous act that takes on vulgar shades when the sing-alongs involve such hauntingly personal confessionals as Dark Parts’ abuse-narrative. Of course, to label such quiet murmurings ‘vulgar’ is ludicrously over-sensitive, but heightened emotions are precisely Perfume Genius’s forte; that we spot more than one fan dabbing away tears comes as no surprise.
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