Reviewed onSaturday February 27
Any keen eyes, or ears, would have noticed that the weekend’s live roster was full of soulful New Zealand artists playing around town. After Fat Freddy’s Drop tore up the Hordern Pavilion on Friday night, it was Jordan Rakei’s turn to impress on Saturday at Newtown Social Club. Whether fans made it to one or both, they were spoilt either way.
Melburnian collective Tulalah commenced things dreamily, playing to the relatively full room with a quiet performance that commanded attention and had most of the audience happily seated. Four of the nine members took to the stage with a huddled set up of guitars, xylophone and hi-hat, their acoustic melodies and jazzy folk harmonies an enticing start to the evening’s live music. A DJ set between Tulalah and Rakei then brought the beat and bass up before the man himself graced the buzzy room.
It speaks volumes when an artist can make their audience silent within the first song. Carrying just an acoustic guitar, Jordan Rakei and that voice had the room at his feet. The depth of the silence was heightened when the crowd erupted in chatter after each song, no doubt raving about what it was witnessing. Its significance was even more emphasised when Rakei mentioned he’d been frustrated about the lack of silence at some shows on his tour.
A few songs deep and Rakei moved to stage left to play the keys, unseen to almost everyone, and probably the only criticism for the night. For what sight lacked, his charming anecdotes and crowd interaction made up. From talking about his love for Game Of Thrones’ Khaleesi, the inspiration for ‘Bey Shing’, to adding context to new song ‘Snitch’, inspired by Biggie Smalls’ ‘Ten Crack Commandments’, to forgetting lines on ‘Hope’ and then explaining what brought him to cover country with Chris Stapleton’s ‘Tennessee Whiskey’, Rakei had entertainment on lock.
When it came to the encore, it was nice to hear his enjoyable side of the story behind his collaboration with Disclosure, ‘Masterpiece’, as it was stripped back to acoustic.
It’s hard to distinguish exactly what shone the most for Rakei; his capable voice, bursts of scats, smooth changes of pace, those tasty guitar licks, or the warming lyrics that spurred the crowd to take over. You name it – it was all there. Maybe it was all in the essence of his last words, humbly chuckled during the applause: “My name is Jordan, if you didn’t know.”
