The evening opened with more of a mood of academia than a party, a reflection on the venue, an esteemed seat of musical learning, and the support act. The producer Visionists' blend of grime, dubstep and dance, sounded to me surprisingly reminiscent of contemporary classical experimentalism. The bass was enveloping, but it failed to move me deeply, or transcend the archetypal electronic music visual presentation, with a lone guy in the middle of the stage twiddling knobs on studio equipment. The overlap between the creative exploration of the cutting edge of classical and electronic music is easily overlooked, yet at least this is one institution that fosters mutual understanding.
FKA Twigs is also experimental and at times demanding listening; from an audio perspective she sounded remarkably close to the acclaimed, recently released LP1 last night, although I felt the vocals lacked a little power in the opening songs. The three backing musicians remained very much out of the limelight, but remained tight. Yet, this show was all about movement, and the remarkable energy and dancing of Tahliah Barnett. She's a striking visual presence, even without the make-up of LP1's striking album art. The lighting exploited the drama of darkness and shadow of what felt primarily like a charismatic solo act.
Like St Vincent, FKA Twigs is a fantastical alter ego, and Tahliah remained in character throughout, with the exception of a brief, and heartfelt acknowledgement of her fans mid set. It's a sensual construct, musically, visually and in the lyrics. If her dancing was the outstanding feature of the set, it's the hooks in the music that seem likely to propel TKA Twigs towards mainstream success. Songs like Lights On or Two Weeks have repeated motifs that attach themselves to your subconscious, and produced a wave of frenzied excitement in the crowd. Her R&B features disembodied beats with elements of trip hop, creating an eerily disturbing atmosphere at times.
A considered assessment of this act is complicated by the current hype, accentuated by a (deserved) recent Mercury Prize nomination. Unsurprisingly, with one album, the set was short, if high intensity, and I felt the first part contained the stronger material. A row about racism is a sad reflection on our times, when tensions locally are high on the day of news of the beheading of local Salford taxi driver Alan Henning by Islamic State. Incredibly in 2014, mixed race Tahliah has been suffering abuse on social media over the past week for dating actor Robert Pattinson.
With a background this depressing, there is more need than ever for immersive artwork to provide an escape from reality, and this was an all encompassing experience. For an artist who has emerged so recently, it was also a surprisingly polished and confident performance, and she's already breaking out of an esoteric, experimental niche into the mainstream. I expected the dark, deep music from LP1 to dominate, but was unprepared for the assured stagecraft. This fusion of the visual and aural deserves all of the acclaim and recognition which seems to be inevitably heading its way. If you're in the UK, seize the chance to see her in a mid sized venue whilst you still have the chance.
Setlist
- Preface
- Ache
- Lights on
- Give Up
- Water Me
- Pendulum
- Numbers
- Hide
- Video Girl
- Kicks
- Papi
- Two Weeks
- How's That
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