EMA, Zola Jesus Manchester Academy 3, 24th November 2011 9.5/10

I'm writing this the morning after a mesmerising show, emotionally exhausted from an intense, psychological experience. Even if you don't read any further, do consider going to a Zola Jesus gig: I hope that like me, you will be captivated. Her fan base is still relatively small, at least in the UK, but intensely loyal. An informative Wikipedia article describes her music as synthpop, gothic rock, electronic and experimental rock, but in order to understand her appeal you need to look more widely at her persona and performance art.

For once, the support act was well judged: in fact despite not having heard of EMA previously, I now hope to go to one of her headline shows.  Erika M Anderson, from South Dakota, has a striking appearance and is an accomplished user of blogs to engage with her fans. EMA blends musical styles: often even within a song there are grunge, goth, and country genres. She's immensely energetic and committed, and deafening noise and whole body vibrating bass combine to create an almost overwhelming experience. As with Zola Jesus, you won't be checking Twitter or thinking about work during her performance: this is all-consuming. Leif Shakelford is a virtuoso electric guitar player and keyboardist, whilst a second guitarist and drummer added to the shattering mix. What I love about this performer is the sense of liberation: she holds nothing back, and despite the dark nature of much of her music, is evidently having fun.

Zola Jesus is sometimes bracketed with Lykke Li (I enjoyed the Scandinavians recent performance in the same venue too), and whilst there are some stylistic similarities, her sound is unique. Nika Roza Danilova chose her provocative stage name to show the futility of religion, and yet she didn't pursue an operatic career owing to battles with stage fright. Her new persona is deeply conceptualised: she's studied philosophy and is an exponent of situtationism where art is represented through one's life and music. Some might say that this elaborate construction serves as protection for her nerves, but happily it has remarkable effects on her performance.

More than anyone else I've seen, Zola Jesus understands engagement with the audience, not by superficially chatting with them (all she said was 'thank-you Manchester') but on a deeper psychological level. By the end of the hour long set I was almost in a trance, absorbed by the almost primeval atmosphere. She achieves this engagement in part by her stagecraft, including amazing use of arm gestures and dancing. She also approaches the very edge of the stage, touches the hands of audience members, and enters the crowd to dance and sing amongst them. Her expression was captivating, and in this small venue, stood right at the front of the stage it was an all-enveloping experience.

The backing band remains anonymous, clad in black and dimly lit. They consist of a drummer and three keyboard players, equipped with Macbooks: this an electronic sound devoid of guitars but no lack of bass. Zola Jesus' voice adds soul and manages to combine power, belying her diminutive stature, with purity and a sense of vulnerability. As you'd expect given her classical training, she is pitch perfect and technically an amazingly consistent vocalist. You could accuse her music of lacking variety: the mood between songs (and between her albums) is similar, yet I feel this is part of her plan. I wished the gig could have continued all night, as I'd almost been hypnotised, and the spell would have been shattered by a mellow acoustic number.

I have go back to the experience I had with Warpaint at The Reading Festival this summer for another performance which was so emotionally powerful, capturing my attention to the total exclusion of all else. The atmosphere was similarly mystical, connecting with the soul at a deep level. I've admired Zola Jesus' recent album Conatus, but it didn't prepare me for the intensity of her live performance: like Portugal. The Man, she's a performer whose recorded work can't really do justice to their talent. It seems appropriate that on Thanksgiving Day, two American performers only added to my gratitude for the exceptional power of music.