I’m not sure what you call it in the blogosphere, but the
last few months I’ve definitely put myself into semi-retirement, hiatus or
possibly hibernation. But on Friday night I witnessed something really special
which I would love to share with you all!!
Gig Review
Who: Madeline Leman (and her incredible band The Desert
Swells)
What: Tennessee Diamond EP Launch
Where: LuWOW, Fitzroy
Supports: Tom Dockray and The House Red
When: Friday September 11th
Sometimes in life, we have moments whereby we become
consumed; emotionally, physically, spiritually – whatever you want to call it.
Moments that make us smile uncontrollably, fill every inch of our skin with
warmth, make us want to yell at the top of our lungs and fill us with a desire
to embrace someone. These moments of course come at any sort of time and are
incredibly unique for an individual; a cold beer with friends on a summer
afternoon, your team winning a sporting event, catching the wave of your life
on a surfboard, and yes the list goes on….
Music, as I’m sure you have figured, often provides an avenue
for me to experience one of ‘those’ moments. It doesn’t happen every time I hit
play on the iPod, nor does it happen every time I see a live show, and to be
perfectly honest, the more music I listen to, the less it occurs. But on Friday
night at LuWOW, I had one of ‘those’ moments.
Madeline Leman is an incredibly talented artist with a stage
presence that I’m sure many seasoned performers would dream about possessing
themselves. Her relaxed and warming nature is infectious; evoking smiles from
just about every single person in the room from the moment she walked on the
stage. And from this point on, we knew we were about to be treated to something
truly special.
The opener for the evening ‘Take me to Nashville’ which is
also the first track on the EP, provides an instantaneous wrap of the journey
Maddy will be taking us on for the next hour. A beautiful song with an early
mention to the greats “…Bonnie and Miss
Emmylou…” of course Emmylou Harris and Bonnie Raitt whereby I’m sure much
inspiration has been drawn into Maddy’s seemingly endless talent. And when
speaking to Maddy, she also states that a current musician Eilen Jewell is a
significant instigator in the wonderful music that we are hearing played out
tonight.
As things continue on we hear the title track of the EP ‘Tennessee
Diamond’ – a ballad of sorts, intense in nature and astonishingly powerful. If
Maddy hadn’t already announced she was here, this song was it – her voice is dynamic
and captivating, with an ability to evoke so many emotions all at the same time.
‘Bottom of Her Grave’ followed and again a somewhat slower number but with just
as much power. At this point to I feel obliged to acknowledge lead guitarist Fabian Hunter – this bloke is a genuine talent and allows each song to have
structure and flow, but adds a little bit of flair of his own (perhaps that’s because
he simply looks a young Ringo Starr!!).
A little bit of a Hawaiian themed ‘Baby Blue’ is thrown in to fit the décor of the
crazy venue we are at LuWOW, as is ‘Lay Me Down’ both cranking things up a
notch before we are hit with ‘Monday Blues’ another track from the Tennessee
Diamond EP. I’ve resisted mentioning one of my favourite bands First Aid Kit
but it was during this song where I couldn’t help but see the strong similarities.
Leah Senior on vocal harmony is unique in so many ways and played such a large
role in making this show what it was. Her energy was contagious and her voice,
well you’ll have to hear it yourself to believe it. The harmonies from Maddy
and Leah were not too dissimilar to Klara and Johanna from First Aid Kit, and
if you know the latter, then you will understand how much of a compliment that
is to Maddy and Leah.
‘Snowman’ follows, the last taster from the EP and again the
huge aptitude from Madeline Leman is thrust upon us. By this point in time she seems
even more comfortable on stage, if that was even possible, and plays her guitar
with an intricacy onto which we hadn’t seen up to this point. Sadly for us, the
show has to end at some point and I think the mutual agreement was that this EP
launch was the start of something great. Hats off to you Miss. Leman and the wonderful
talented bunch of musicians that are lucky enough to share the stage with you…..
Thanks
LF
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