It takes a fair crowd to fill the circus tent that is HQ. Towards the end of the second support act (Melbourne’s Strange Talk), the place still was not at capacity. However, it seemed that Kele’s fans – of which there would turn out to be many, and enthusiastic the lot of them – had some sixth sense about when he would be starting. Sure enough, the dance floor and surrounds rapidly filled up just in time for the Bloc Party frontman to make his entrance on stage.
Accompanied by a backing band of three, it was clear from the start that Kele was in full possession of the stage. Dressed comfortably in sneakers, black basketball shorts and a jumper, he was only going to be able to rely on stage presence to make an impression. And that’s exactly what he did. With aplomb.
The first song or two were spent with him at the microphone stand, eyes closed – commanding certainly, but still warming up. After that, to the boisterous joy of the crowd, the sweater came off to reveal a plain black wife-beater. He was hot, pumped and ready to go.
From there he went on to dance around the stage, crowd surf, climb whatever he could, and reach out to let the palpitating females in the first couple of rows touch a hand or an arm or whatever they could.
Kele performed songs from his solo album, The Boxer, including highlights ‘Everything You Wanted’ and ‘All The Things I Could Never Say’. Kele also included a few songs from his Bloc Party repertoire, which was, needless to say, much appreciated by the audience. Another high point was a duet with his female keyboardist/backing vocalist, ‘New Rules’. It showed Kele’s versatility, and was a sweet contrast to the more upbeat, bass heavy tracks that dominated the night.
A side note, now that we’re on the topic of bass – it was turned all the way up. We’re talking to eleven here. In fact, it frequently verged on overpowering the vocals. Yet, this cannot be taken as a criticism. Sometimes feeling the music means really feeling it – feeling it vibrate through your skin – and not just hearing it.
Though this reviewer’s recent interview with Kele had led her to a different impression of his personality, the side of himself that he presented on stage was nothing if not the complete opposite. Energetic, passionate, and always ready to show that beaming grin, he was clearly overjoyed to be sharing his music with people that wanted to experience it with him. And at the end of the day, that’s really all that matters.
– Serrin Prior
