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“This is a cool venue this, it’s like where your mum would take you for a charity barn dance…” smiled Holly Lapsley Fletcher, staring bemusedly up at the dripping hops and wooden barrel-shaped setting of London Fields Brewery.
A twee village dance, however it was most-definitely not and the sold-out crowd (clad mainly in black) watched in quiet awe as the 18-year-old Liverpudlian and multi-instrumentalist began the first London date of her first ever tour.
Drizzled in soft blue light and dressed in an abstract kimono jacket, the BBC Sound of 2015 nominee started her set with an isolated vocal for ‘Brownlow’, which soon descended into a warm bath of slow bass and twinkly synths, punctuated with the rumbling of trains passing by from above.
Fusing classical devices with electronic elements, the singer-producer also showcased two beautiful new songs, the tentatively titled ‘Glitch’ and ‘Take A Minute’ – managing, with both, to hypnotise the audience via the soulful, passionate maturity of her voice and her skilled keyboard playing.
Highlights of the evening included her magical reinvention of favourite band Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Rhiannon’ which demonstrated a slowed down vocal and pulsing rhythmic synths, and the jazzy, glitchy perfection of ‘Falling Short’ which saw one fan lose his mind (‘GO ON HOLLY!’) at just the opening piano note.
Closing with the heart-melting minimalism of ‘Station’, she showcased her vocal drop tone technique by flitting back and forth between two mics, each switch met with loud whoops and cheers from the inhabitants of the darkened Brewery. The captivating act gave the impression she was duetting with herself, making it one of the most affecting and original live shows this writer has seen in a long time. If there’s one artist to see live this summer, Lapsley is it.
