The Verse’s Houx Parkinson shares her thoughts on rising star Jack Garratt’s gig finalising his UK tour at the Brighton Dome.
On the last leg of his sixteen gig UK tour Jack Garratt smashes his final show. Kicking it off to a very enthusiastic crowd with ‘Breathe Life’ taken from his 2016 debut album ‘Phase’ he killed the opening number! The stage set was simple yet drenched with a dramatic edge, Jack is an artist-producer which means he plays everything himself live onstage, on one singular risen block in the centre holds a drum kit, synthesiser, electric guitar, mic and probably even more. His mix of alternative indie with electronica won Jack the BRIT 2016 Critics’ Choice Award and it was truly well deserved, the audience was living for him and vice versa.
Bringing to the stage ‘Weathered’ and ‘Far Cry’ some of the most loved tracks from the album, his energy on stage was electric. Jack chats to the crowd with humour and little stories keeping the audience entertained throughout, especially with one big joke when he asked if we wanted a cover track; obviously the crowd go wild with screams and pleads. I saw one girl on twitter refer to this section of the set as the reason she has trust issues, as he pretends to start playing one song then stops, continuing to run through around ten different intros and laughs as the crowd get hyped then cry with disappointment.
After hinting at Spice Girls, Nirvana and even the Fresh Prince of Belair theme tune we finally get the gift of his Radio 1 Live Lounge cover of Craig David’s 7 Day’s and Justin Timberlake’s Señorita, yes, we we’re actually that lucky. When you think your evening can’t get any better, you were wrong, because straight up next is ‘Fire’ and if you’re into the more electronic, drum and base style tracks Jack has then you’ll live for this. I forget to mention that with every beat the stage lighting went crazy, strobing, flashing, bright white lights from up stage, down stage, all over the stage, adding to the already intoxicated atmosphere his music creates.
Coming to the end of the set Jack gives the audience a choice, one or two final tracks, and is it any surprise we all opt for two? With a heavy heart Jack plays ‘My House Is Your Home’ bringing relevance to the state of the world right now and how we need positivity and kindness, before ending with the one we we’re all waiting for ‘Worry’. All in all the percussion of Jack’s live set compared to the audio album is incredible, the sound he puts out there online is already celebrated but the passion that goes into developing his stage presence is a game changer.
If you haven’t already, download his album ‘Phase’ and definitely watch out for live performances in the new year, so excited to see what’s next for 2017! Jack was discovered by the BBC Radio 1 introducing scheme and won the ‘Sound of 2016’ award through them earlier this year, the long-list is now up for the 2017 award, so I’d keep an eye out on who’s being raved about, the short-list will be up in January!
