Ainslie Wills brought her nine-show You Go Your Way, I’ll Go Mine tour to an end at Black Bear Lodge, the night opening with local musician Emerson Snowe.
Beginning with the vocally-driven ‘Bruises’, Snowe demonstrated his vocal and lyrical prowess, with vague similarities to ex-Wolfmother frontman Andrew Stockdale in the top of his register.
After a string of recent shows with a four-piece band (with whom he notably supported The Temper Trap earlier in the month), Snowe took things back to basics, performing with simply himself and a guitar, free of the samples and synth he typically utilises.
After fumbling with his Capo, Snowe closed with ‘Bella-Rose’. With its beautiful string progression and drawn-out, heartbreakingly raw vocals he brought a simple but aurally impressive set to a close.
Skinny Jean then took to the stage with all guns blazing, launching into an intriguing mix of contemporary and traditional mediums, the heavy beat and Space Invaders style sampling made for a lively and refreshing track. Shêm Allen as a frontman is engaging and vocally outstanding, also taking charge of some guitar and synth-work.
‘Abort, Abort’ had vintage Vampire Weekend vibes with nonsensical lyrics and a catchy beat. The addition of backing vocals from lead guitarist, with his classic (but never boring) voice, added a depth beyond their wall-of-sound presentation.
‘Atlas’ showcased their fast-paced percussion and vocal experimentation from frontman Allen- Skinny Jean aren’t shy about experimenting with sound and surprising crowds.
Closing with a song called ‘Philistine’, Skinny Jean carefully understand the balance between organised chaos and plain old noise, with each member being extremely musically skilled.
Judging by their jazz-style instrumentation and vocal techniques, at least a few members of the band are classically trained, utilising their skills to create an alternative, contemporary sound that’s apparently underpinned by solid training.
When Ainslie Wills and her band eagerly took to the stage, the crowd converged at the stage as the atmospheric, sweeping intro of ‘Mary’ began. Punctuated by Aaron Light on percussion, the track was a good choice as an opener to showcase Wills’ effortless vocal ability.
Moving on with ‘Lemon Japan’, it was clear that the songstress and her band play in complete synergy. Guitarist and co-writer Lawrence Folvig and Jules Pascoe on bass blend their instruments together in a deft manner that contributed to a nice build in the track.
Wearing what seemed to be a niftily twisted and tied scarf as a dress, Wills possesses a childlike vulnerability in her between-song banter that all but disappeared when she started singing. Turning into a soulful, jazzy performer (equally as impressive on the guitar as with her voice), Wills performed with total conviction.
Moving on to a song bluntly described as about “being stuck in a bad relationship”, ‘Liquid Paper’ was maybe the highlight of her set- proving her to be perfectly sufficient without a band’s backing.
‘Ocean’ followed, opening with a pretty intro from Folvig and swelling into a crescendo that thoroughly occupied the space. While the track definitely showed off Wills’ vocal range, after an extended conclusion that ended with her kneeling on stage in an apparently introspective state, it bordered on the self-indulgent.
A track that’s recently received some radio-play, ‘Stop Pulling The String’ guaranteed the attention of the crowd with its a cappella intro, which lead into a crowd-pleasing track with plenty of satisfying vocal reverb.
It’d be easy to slot Wills into the same category as token quirky-girl Kimbra, but she surpasses that with her completely genuine, likeable persona. Vocally, she showed a range that included elements of Regina Spektor, Feist and even Madeline Peyroux in her jazz-style songs.
‘Early Morning Light’ was a pretty but slightly unremarkable closing track, with an uplifting build and steady beat that had most of the crowd tapping their feet.
Closing by thanking the audience “for supporting live music”, there was a strong sense of musical camaraderie between all acts of the night, Skinny Jean frontman Allan correcting himself when using the term ‘supporting’ instead of merely ‘playing’ when thanking Emerson Snowe. After a wildly successful tour it’s evident that Wills is creating and performing some seriously good material.
