Emmy the Great made an appearance at Bodega only a day after the launch of her third album, ‘Second Love.’
Their set consisted majorly of this futuristic, yet moving, album. Emma-Lee Moss, the face of Emmy the Great, was so humble to thank the crowd for their patience listening to ‘unknown’ songs: it is hard to believe this graceful electronic sound will stay unknown for long.
This modest attitude came across throughout her set. Several times throughout the gig, Emma introduced, and thanked, her fellow band members, along with thanking her team and the crowd for giving up their Saturday night to see her. Emma also reaped praise for support act – O Karmina. Even a broken wire didn’t hinder proceedings; with Emma explaining that it did not matter if a couple of her sounds were not heard and subsequently changed set list while her team fixed the issue. Emma’s approachability complemented the intimate venue – creating a fantastic vibe in the crowd. The reception of Emmy the Great’s sound was pure pleasure within the audience; with shouts out such as – “you are a genuine talent”, which was, of course, received with Emma’s utmost gratitude. There was a considerably varied crowd of different ages and characters. Nevertheless, all appeared to receive the music with sways, cheers and positivity.
The set began with the fantastic ‘Dinosaur Sex’ from the second album ‘Virtue,’ implying Emma’s view on humanity and our mortality. Interestingly, Emma sang that we may ‘lead to something’ but recorded the lyric ‘nothing.’ Songs to note undeniably included ‘First Love,’ from so called debut album. This caused much excitement within the crowd – likely due to a mix of its familiarity, being in debut album and attributes to Leonardo Cohen’s ‘Hallelujah,’ and it’s quirky, folk-y, upbeat nature. This was followed by the first released single of ‘Second Love’- ‘Swimming Pool,’ which appeared the most well-known by the audience. It’s hauntingly ground-breaking use of synth, paired with Emma’s eloquently beautiful vocals, certainly kept the crowd swaying.
The most intriguing aspect of this gig was Emma’s demure detail into her song writing. Before the gorgeous ‘Social Halo,’ we were given some of the history of the word ‘Soho’ – including the Duke of Monmouth’s use of the word and how it is used in different countries. Emmy the Great continually kept the audience on their toes. When Emma gave us a quick ‘thank you,’ it appeared we were getting a cliché encore but we were in fact graced with her individual performance of ‘Edward is Dedward,’ ‘Canopies and Drapes’ – which she explained she had updated, and ‘Easter Parade.’ Her solo set managed to impress to the same degree as with her band, which really speaks for an act.
Emmy the Great’s humble attitude and wholesome, elegant talent really shone through at Bodega and it feels like her growing fan base is ready to explode.
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