Saturday night found me at Howler for the penultimate date of Aleksiah’s Good on Paper tour.
This wasn’t even remotely where I was supposed to be tonight but a last minute buying and selling flurry on Tixel saw me offloading the tickets I’d purchased months ago (for two different gigs) and snapping up these Aleksiah ones a few hours before the show started. I’d been trying to catch Aleksiah live for over a year, and if I had any doubts or regrets about my last minute change of heart they were quickly swept away as I walked into the Howler bandroom to the sounds of Lara Buchanan’s stunning voice.
I didn’t know Lara’s music before this show and I definitely left as a fan. She has the most incredibly powerful, emotive voice and absolutely commanded the stage – making it look entirely effortless as she sat strumming her guitar while she sang. You can always tell when a support act knocks it out of the park when the crowd is silent. There was none of the usual murmuring and chattering (at least not where I was stood anyway) and it was such an unexpected treat to open the night.
Holly Hebe was next with her energetic pop set. I’ve long had a soft spot for Holly and she’s always looks like she’s having so much fun on stage. I’m keen to see how Holly develops her live set with her new EP Mood Ring which is set to drop mid July. I love that she takes the time to play instruments on stage, but she always looks so free when she’s just singing and dancing so I’m curious to see which direction she takes this.
Finally, with the crowd very ready, Aleksiah takes the stage to whooping and cheering. The room is packed and I’m surprised to find out later in the show I’m amongst a small minority of first timers seeing her live! Over the next hour Aleksiah takes us on an emotional journey of highs and lows, punctuating her latest EP with a carefully chosen selection from her back catalogue.
Anyone who’s heard Aleksiah’s music knows she isn’t scared about being real and she embodies that vulnerability on the stage too. I feel like everyone needs to go and see an artist like this at least once in their lives. She ranges from free and careless for Faker and Punch Drunk Love to openly emotionally and vulnerable for Think About It, to perfectly put together for Bullsh*t Baby. And isn’t that just a precise parallel for how we all move through life?
She opens the show with dramatic lighting and an attention capturing voiceover before heading straight into popular track Punch Drunk Love. While there are calmer moments such as her cover of Whitney’s I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me), her energetic performance mostly sees her dancing and moving non-stop, flitting between instruments and using every inch of the stage. You would think this would make the performance feel more staged but she manages to interweave an intimacy in there too. It’s clear she genuinely cares for her fans, from sweetly checking in with those close to the front from time to time and carefully selecting her ‘best dressed’ for their moment in the spotlight.
The set passes in the blink of an eye. There are so many stand out moments, it’s impossible to cover them all! It feels remiss to not mention the fun-filled cover of Girls Just Want To Have Fun where Aleksiah invites Holly and Lara back on stage to join her alongside Matilda Pearl and Emeree – a part of the set that’s possibly become iconic as this tour has progressed.
There’s lots of singing and dancing along, and joy definitely overwhelms the poignant moments as the lasting tone for the evening. The end of the main set sees a mass sing along to Bullsh*t Baby before she finally sends us off, post encore, with a soup recipe. It’s the little touches like this that linger. Aleksiah has an affinity with the word diva and this show was definitely diva-esque!
Find out more about Aleksiah here.