LIVE REVIEW: KARIMA FRANCIS @ THE FINSBURY - 20TH MARCH 2018
Background:
Following the release of her debut record ‘The Author’ in 2009, the future looked very exciting for Alt-rock singer/songwriter ‘Karima Francis’. A string high profile performances with the likes of ‘Later With Jools Holland’ and ‘Hard Rock Calling’ earned her a record deal with Vertigo Records. However, despite high critical praise for ‘The Author’ and follow up ‘The Remedy’ the albums didn’t reach anywhere near the commercial success that they deserved. Following a string of personal and health issues alongside being dropped by her label; Karima decided to take a step back for a while, move back to her hometown of BlackPool and refocus her attentions. In 2016, she came back with her third record ‘Black’ and is currently in the process of writing and recording her as yet untitled fourth album.
The Finsbury - 20th March 2018
The evening kicks off with relative newcomer ‘Lilac Underworld’; dressed in black and white pinstripe and rocking a top hat, she is already the coolest person in the room before a single note is played. ‘Lilac Underworld’ kicks off her set with ‘Evergreen In My Soul’ a simple melancholic track that draws comparisons with ‘Kate Bush’. Her powerful voice fills the room as she shows off an incredible vocal range, hitting high notes with ease and demonstrating incredible vibrato. This is followed by a more upbeat folk tune ‘Comfort In The Rain’. It isn’t long before the room has started to fill and everyone is captivated by her eclectic performance. Fourth song ‘Salmon Girl’ is where everything really kicks up a notch. Describing the song as a “murder ballad” the song sounds like a brilliant mesh of 'Johnny Cash' and 'Nick Cave'. Taking multiple twists and turns, just as you think the song is coming to an end she switches to a beautiful slow pre-chorus before blasting into a surprisingly heavy final chorus, practically screaming at the crowd. The effect of this is outstanding as there isn’t a single person left in the room who isn’t fully immersed as she dives straight into her final song of the night ‘Philosophy Of Our Minds’. Tuned all the way down to drop B, this is a powerful ballad that amplifies her phenomenal vocal range. There are similarities between her and the late ‘Kurt Cobain’ as the low bass guitar recalls some of ‘Nirvana’s slow and darkest material like ‘Something In The Way’.
Next up on stage is ‘Freddie Dickson’. Armed with an electric guitar and a small pedal board, he demonstrates a great command of dynamics as he switches between soft and hard, slow and fast, finger picking and strumming with incredible ease. New song ‘Slip Of The Heart’ is a beautifully complex piece that brings to mind the likes of ‘Will Varley’ as well as ‘Dave Grohl’. He continues this with ‘Fuel’ where his performance becomes more lively, there are rockier moments which are used sparingly and to great effect and by the end of the song it is clear that Dickson is well within his comfort zone by now. His stage patter with the audience is less forced and he is clearly having a good time on stage, as are the listeners in the ever growing crowd. His performance continues to improve as the set goes on as he continues to show off his expert guitar playing and impressive vocal range. Closing the set with another new song ‘State Of Grace’ Dickson decides to make the switch to acoustic which proves to be a mistake as he is then plagued with a series of sound issues and feedback problems. He handles this well, but the long wait whilst the sound technicians attempt to fix things does take away from the performance. The song is great, but continuing issues with sound balance make it a slightly underwhelming end to a good set.
Last, but by now means least is headline act ‘Karima Francis’ accompanied by a multi talented keyboardist, Francis is easily the most lively and diverse performer of the night. Regularly alternating between electric and acoustic guitars whilst encountering none of the sound issues that plagued Dickson earlier, Francis’ set is a lively mixture of slow melancholic guitar ballads and upbeat folk music. Warming up the crowd with the first couple of songs, fourth song ‘Remedy’ is where things really start to take off. A beautiful soft ballad that is a massive hit with the crowd who find themselves swaying in unison. She follows this with a new song ‘Friends’; a much slower and darker song, friends leaps and bounds from deafly silent hooks to howling loud chorus’s which shows an unparalleled control of dynamics on a night full of spectacular performers. As the set progresses, drums and synths are added into the mix which add an extra dimension to Francis’ performance that the earlier support acts were lacking. This is used to expert effect with closing ballad ‘Wherever I May Go’ as Francis serenades the crowd to the accompaniment of a gorgeous piano. With a lineup of exceptional artists, Karima Francis reaches another level which will hopefully propel her forward to further success.
