Leon Bridges @ Fremantle Arts Centre
w/ Milan Ring
Sunday, September 25, 2022
It was a chilly September night, but sheltered in the beautiful grounds of Fremantle Arts Centre there was no wind, just the warmth of hundreds of happy people spilling into the venue and filling every spot on the grass. The vibe was buzzing amongst the sold-out crowd. It was perfect conditions for a concert, and lucky for us, Mr Leon Bridges was here to deliver.
It’s been a long wait for fans of the soulful, honey-voiced Fort Worth, Texas crooner, but he finally made it to our shores, and boy did he make it worth it. There were high expectations, but Bridges and his band surpassed them with effortless cool, immense talent and a masterclass consummate performance.
Bursting onto the scene in 2015 with his debut album and single of the same name, Coming Home, Bridges evoked a retro soul sound and style straight out of the 60s, and he looked the part too with his sharp suits and haircut. Since then he’s evolved into a fully formed, multi-faceted artist, proving himself more than a derivative.
On 2018’s Good Thing he expanded his palette to include more contemporary influences, and produced his most complete record yet in last year’s sublime Gold-Diggers Sound, mixing elements of jazz and soul with modern pop and R&B, finding his own unique voice. He’s as much Sam Cooke as he is D’Angelo.
Leon’s star is definitely on the rise, even collaborating with fellow Texans Khruangbin on a pair of EPs Texas Sun/Texas Moon. And on Sunday night we got to see him bring it all together – his silken voice, his dance moves, his undeniable charisma and his amazing band. It was the first show of his fully sold-out Australian tour, which includes two nights in Melbourne, and three at Sydney Opera House, and it’s not hard to see why.
The crowd were also in for a bonus treat with the talented Sydney singer-songwriter, guitarist, rapper and producer Milan Ring. As she started, a large portion of the crowd were still sitting on blankets on the lawn, but a small group started forming at the front. It appears Milan has a dedicated little fan base of her own and it was soon obvious why as she proved her talent.
While often playing with a band, she was in solo support mode tonight – a veritable one woman band, she sang and played guitar while triggering samples and backing tracks. She kicked off with Green Light, a great lowslung groove, featuring beautiful vocals and an impressive guitar solo. She garnered big cheers, capturing the crowd immediately.
Putting down her guitar, she showed her diversity with some smooth and jazzy rapping on Fluttering and Hide With You (the first song on her debut album I’m Feeling Hopeful written in lockdown times).
There was a beautiful, melodic, acoustic guitar picked number, and she finished with the sophisticated pop of Sydney Hue featuring African-Australian artist Blessed. Milan is a real talent and definitely one to watch. She did a great job of building the vibe, and the anticipation was tangible as more people stood and moved to the front.
Soon enough the stage was set – beautifully styled and simple, yet elegant – backed by a large curtain, which would be bathed in bold primary colours, with minimal projections and subtle lighting. The band took their places, kicking into gear with the downtempo jazzy new album opener Born Again feat Robert Glasper, before Leon Bridges strolled out looking super smooth in his brown suede jacket and slacks, big sunglasses and afro – a far reach from his sharp-suited early soul incarnation. He immediately commanded attention from the moment he opened his mouth.
Not only did he have the voice, but he had the moves. Grooving away as he prowled the stage, busting little popping and locking moves. And his band were incredible, tight and understated. Two guitarists, bass, drums, keyboard/sax and two backing vocalists – who created a big, full sound, that lifted the songs to another level than their recorded versions. They did their job with little fanfare, apart from the moments where Leon asked them to step into spotlight.
After the upbeat groove of Steam, he asked “Who’s ready for some rock n roll?” before launching into Smooth Sailing from his debut, which got everyone moving.
Brown Skin Girl brought the tempo down with its slinky groove. A beautiful, though slow, love song. Leon felt the vibe of the crowd and interrupted the song to say “We’re gonna get to the slow jams… but I think y’all look like you wanna dance tonight… So we’re gonna remix this a little.” Then proceeded to kick back into a more upbeat version of the track. Clever move.
A welcome surprise that got one of the biggest cheers of night was his big single with Khruangbin, Texas Sun. It’s just an absolutely blissful summer vibe that permeates the night air and had everyone swaying. It was funny to think that Khruangbin themselves would be playing on the very same stage in eight weeks time! It’s a shame they couldn’t have toured together (they recently performed at Glastonbury together) as that would have been amazing, but it was good to see Leon take the spotlight for himself, because he is one hell of a performer.
The great moments just kept coming, with Motorbike and Magnolias real highlights off the new album, but it was Sweeter that may have been track of the night with it’s smooth vibes, complete with a sweet sax solo.
He humbly gave all his players their moment to shine too. The backing vocalist girl and guy were particularly notable – Marcel and Jessie (they revealed that all the band members had their names on the back of their jackets), sharing a few moments of their own.
Jessie joined Leon at the front to provide harmonies, accompanied only by his guitar, and some soft keys, for a stunning performance of the gospel track River – the beautiful closing track from Coming Home – the title track of which was another highlight that got a big reaction.
Mrs was another gorgeous track that saw the guitarist step forward into the spotlight and absolutely shred on a killer solo, before finishing on an incredible extended take of Bad Bad News which left the crowd begging for more.
We soon got what we hoped for with a short but sweet encore of two tracks from his debut album. The doo-wop soul of Lisa Sawyer and the bluesy fun finale of Twistin’ & Groovin’ which Bridges introduced by professing, “One thing I’m always gonna do… is keep the blues alive.”
Impossible to fault, it was a timeless show for the ages from a true pro. And that everybody, is how it’s done. Amen.
ALFRED GORMAN
Photos by Alan Holbrook
