Well, I’m home and absolutely wrecked, but the experience getting to this point was very much worth it. After a nice weekend away we were in Sydney last night for an Emiliana Torrini concert, and I must say that it was one of the best gigs I’ve been to. Unfortunately, the lack of sleep and the 5am departure from Sydney in order to get back in time for work weren’t so good. Where to begin, let’s see…

The first thing we noticed was that Emiliana is quite short, a bit shy and exceptionally charismatic. I find it quite unusual that someone who is obviously a bit introverted and/or shy could be so charismatic and build such a great rapport with the crowd. The way she introduced herself and the band and her reaction to seeing such a crowd (she said it looked to be the largest venue she had played in, but I can’t imagine that is the case) made it obvious that she was a little, perhaps, intimidated and certainly a little over-awed. However, once she started singing – wow.

I thought her voice sounded good on CD. I thought she had one of the best and most powerful voices for that style of singing that I have heard in some time. However, after hearing her in concert and going back to listen to the CDs again, her voice doesn’t sound quite as powerful on the album. She was simply amazing in concert – singing most of the time with her eyes closed, obviously feeling and very much ‘into’ the music – swaying along, holding her fingers and with her left hand sashaying about as she sang (in one of her little asides she described it as being like something from the Living Dead movie). She seemed to be the most honest and emotional singer I have ever seen in concert – there was no pretence or exaggerated stage presence; no ‘too cool for you’ attitude (unlike the support band) – just a wonderful music experience.

She played a great set too – she played all the songs from her Fisherman’s Woman album, which was what we were primarily there for, to be honest; but she also played some of the best songs from her previous Love in the Time of Science album, including ‘Unemployed in Summertime’, ‘Summerbreeze’ and ‘Tuna Fish’. I went in really hoping that she would play several songs from Fisherman’s Woman and also ‘Unemployed in Summertime’, so my wish was granted. One of the very interesting things, apart from the strength and clarity of her voice, was the way that some of the tracks varied from their album counterparts: some were sped up a bit, others slowed down, and others just syncopated differently. While we would have been happy just hearing the songs sung exactly as they were on the album, the variation was also pleasant and made the concert that much more enjoyable.

The other best thing about the concert was all the little asides and stories that Emiliana gave during the concert. She stopped and talked to the crowd between almost every song – sometimes telling a little story, sometimes a funny anecdote, sometimes something about the song itself, and sometimes all three. More often than not she had the crowd in uproarious laughter – as I said, for someone so shy it was amazing that she could be so charismatic. Unfortunately, most of the best stories don’t translate well into print – you just had to be there. On reflection, the stories really added to the experience – if it weren’t for the stories and tales, it still would have been a good concert, but not one of the best I’ve been to. The stories made it feel like you were sharing an insight into Emiliana’s songwriting – into her life even; they made it feel as though you were friends and just getting to know each other over a bottle of wine and a nice evening somewhere – it didn’t at all feel like we were purely being ‘entertained’. We are also convinced that Emiliana would make a very fun friend – someone who could always be the life of the party and keep you entertained with stories like that.

I would have loved to have posted photos as well – we even bought a new camera lens so we could take decent photos without a flash, and we had a great spot at the concert – only two people between Tegan and the stage directly in front of Emiliana’s microphone – but unfortunately they had a no-camera policy (although it would have been nice to know that beforehand). We have some suspicions about why that might be the case: if it wasn’t the promoter’s decision, then it may have been because it would have made Emiliana self-conscious, or because the flashes might have thrown her off her singing, particularly since it was a softly lit and intimate atmosphere. Anyway, it’s a bit disappointing since we would have got some great photos.

In summary: if you haven’t already, you really should buy the “Fisherman’s Woman” album. It’s one of my finds of the year, and has instantly become one of my favourite albums of all time. And go and see Emiliana Torrini in concert. Or come with us next time she visits Australia, or the next time we visit some other country where she’s playing. I was sorely tempted to try to make it to another Australian concert – it was that good – but there really isn’t enough time in the week as it is.