Backlit by the outline of a neon hexagon that from the back looks like the roof of a house and surrounded by the most impressive drum kit set up I’ve ever seen, Georgia is in the midst of an anthem.
This is the top floor of the iconic Clwb Ifor Bach. A sea of hands clapping, her black curls on top of her bobbing head Georgia’s arms flailing to all regions of her kit, her voice giddy, Georgia is a whirling dervish with a grin, in the eye of the hurricane. This is a crescendo, and she’s in “a moment with you” she’s in a moment with all of us, as the assembled crowd sing along, dance, revel in her awesome signature single from last year ‘About Work The Dancefloor’.
Georgia is a one woman band, a party starter in control of her throng. Draped in neon and flickering synths she hammers the best of 80s synth pop and early 90s dance into the shape of bright bold millennial pop songs. Her set ushered in with ‘24 hours‘ inspired by Georgia’s experience of the party scene in Berlin, capturing the euphoria of a heady night in the dance music capital of Europe. With its hooky couplets, propulsive live drums and flickering keyboards, its insatiable. Her giddy vocals are both earnest and catchy, as she promises we ‘If two hearts ever beat the same, we could be it, we could be it, we could be it (Woo)’. This is a heady rush that supercharges our evening. ‘Never Let you Go’ is an absolute wonderful delight, a spinning catherine wheel of bright synths and impassioned melodies that clasp you to their bosom, insidious and joyous, its lost in a moment of devotion.
A former footballer and drummer for Kate Tempest, Georgia has been on the ascent all year, the release of her second and best album Seeking Thrills in January on Domino the follow up to her more over manicured and debut. It’s a bright, bold and brilliant record, crammed with floor fillers and hooks. Recently her show has been rapturously received every where she goes. She was criticised by some for her live vocals at Glastonbury last year, but whilst she may not be pinpoint on key on every bar, that matters not because her energy is insatiable, her talent burgeoning, her excellently crafted songs are tunes that beg to be sung along to, moved too.
Before Georgia hit the stage Cardiff’s Dead Method aka Cardiff’s own Lloyd Best delivers a bass heavy, evocative set of bangers that ripple with a darkness. “Blonde is the colour of success” he sings with a touch of Boy George about this R’n’B daubed track with an enveloping synth line and room shaking beats. A proud champion for LGBTQ+ culture, his songs ripple with a certain industrial glamour and a touch of violence, his voice gyrating through the sweaty throng with a pleasing elegance and hard coated exterior. The addictive refrains of his recent single ‘Violent Men‘ are redolent of the fractured electro of Fischerspooner or Anohni, its about the abusive men that lead us. Throbbing and shuddering it becomes a communal anthem when he sings at the top of his lungs between these sinuous beats and snakey synth lines. Dead Method is a promising artist with depths still to be explored.
Near the end, Georgia pulls out a really fun call and response cover of Kate Bush‘s ‘Running Up that Hill’ showing she doesn’t just have the chops but the influences and knowledge of musical history to expand and grow as an artist in future years.
After a tight hour of material, Gerogia has left the stage we are sweatier, hoarser and the soles of out feet are worse for wear because of it. But our hearts are full to the brim, our heads alive with her melodies and songs, our ears reverberating to the addictive beat of the dance floor. This is Georgia and this is her house.
Photos by Bethan Miller www.twitter.com/bethanmillerco
