GIG REVIEW: Tegan and Sara at Paradiso, Amsterdam
It has been 7 years since I last saw Tegan and Sara in concert. It's amazing to see the identical twins from Canada are still going strong internationally after so many albums. It was not a sold out concert, but the crowd was full of girls and a few tall guys at the front who were big fans.
Tegan was the main one of the two, the main talker, the one who played guitar, the main songwriter but all of my friends who came along all agreed that Sara was the cuter one and because she's more introverted. Both seem incredibly down to earth and entertained the crowd with stories and engaged with members of the audience who recently had heartbreaks.
They played their new songs (my favourite one is called 'Boyfriend') and my old faves such as Walking With A Ghost, Back In Your Head, Alligator and Closer.
All in all it was a cute concert. Wouldn't die to see them again during this tour, but maybe in 7 years again! Thank you to my special Bianca for taking me along! <3
GIG REVIEW: Lianne La Havas supported by Roseau at Paradiso, Amsterdam
I had the privilege of seeing these two London beauties, Lianne La Havas and her good friend/support act Roseau, perform a sold-out show in Amsterdam's iconic Paradiso. I played with Roseau on the small stage of Paradiso in 2013, when she performed in duo Peter & Kerry. Roseau's (Kerry Leatham) new act is more electronic, introverted and less 'singer-songwriter' than Peter & Kerry. The music is definitely closer to her heart and comes from within.
The last time I saw Lianne was in the Summer at Lowlands 2015. Lianne was great. The crowd was a mix of very young fans at the front, dads in the back, and other mainstreamers (including me and my date for the evening) from 20-35. The crowd was super attentive and very quiet when Lianne played with her guitar alone. Lianne's old tracks were a hit with the crowd, and some of the new ones had a different feel, some more happy, and some more rocky. It's cool to see her experimenting a little with styles.
GIG REVIEW: Jessie Ware at Paradiso, Amsterdam
Jessie Ware is a funny character. I find her very down to earth, wearing KLM air stewardess-like heels (i.e. very practical). She was even making fun of a couple in the front of the crowd for making out during her song! It's something I have seen also in other UK artists, such as Adele, music so serious but as soon as they open their mouth, you're cracking up with laughter.
Jessie Ware's new album, Tough Love is really really good. This kind of electronic-pop is really popular right now, but she gets it right and the album is really well produced too.
Something really freaky I saw was a man's head reflected in the drummer's transparent barrier but it totally looked like a theatre prompter. hahaha I was speaking with a colleague just recently about this phenomenon as I didn't know such a job existed!
GIG REVIEW: Elliphant at Paradiso, Amsterdam
If there's someone who rocks a stage with just her and one DJ, it's Elliphant. Seriously. And for playing in Paradiso small hall with a crowd so tiny, her energy filled a sold out stadium. And my date for the evening Camille and I danced like we were at a dance festival. It was a crazy good vibe and set. I'm really impressed by Elliphant and her spontaneous and filterless energy is hard not to catch.
