Review: Jalen Ngonda at Freo.Social
Jalen Ngonda at Freo.Social
w/ Ella Thompson
Tuesday, January 21, 2025
There’s been a lot of buzz about Jalen Ngonda of late, and at a sold-out show in Freo on Tuesday night, the man more than lived up to the hype, proving he is the real deal and a true talent. While he’s been putting out music for almost 10 years, it was the release of his debut album, Come Around and Love Me, in 2023 that has seen him blow up in Europe and his home country.
The African American Ngonda was born and raised in Maryland, just outside of Washington, DC, though he’s been living in the UK for a decade since moving there to attend Liverpool’s Institute for Performing Arts. He thrived in the city with a strong musical history that has always had a deep love and respect for the classics and (Northern) soul.
Along with like-minded artists like Leon Bridges, Ngonda is part of a resurgence of the golden era of Motown 60s soul, along with the retro fashion and high-pants style. It’s nu-soul with a warm pop sensibility, a dash of blues and jazz, mixed with a contemporary sound. A welcome respite of carefree, timeless music in these troubling times. The kind of music that’s a warm embrace you can wrap yourself up in, tales of the heart and heartbreak, focusing on that most powerful and human emotion, love.
Signed to the prestigious Brooklyn-based Daptone Records—home of the Dap-Kings and the late, great Sharon Jones—you know he is legit. He’s already toured in support of Lauryn Hill and has fans ranging from Snoop Dogg to Elton John.
Ngonda’s talent is singular—a gifted, classic songwriter with a soaring, silky smooth tenor voice, as well as impressive guitar skills. Though as stellar as his recordings are, they don’t do justice to just how great he is live. He’s really in his element in front of an audience and doesn’t need all the production to shine. He feeds off the crowd and got better as the night progressed.
The diverse crowd streamed in around 8pm. Soul lovers of all ages, from young hipsters to older hep cats. To warm things up nicely in support was the fabulous Ella Thompson—a past member of Melbourne funk band The Bamboos, who has carved out a career as a solo soul songstress with a big voice and a big band, including a two-piece horn section, featuring a talented woman who swapped between sax and flute.
They had a deep, full sound and launched into some cool jams with floaty grooves and Thompson out front, belting out her powerful vocals and jiving away during the instrumental sections.
A highlight was the smooth, swinging Omen from her new album Ripple on the Wing, which just came out in November. Another fine cut from the record Let There Be Nothing, she dedicated to Carmela Soprano.
Never Fight The Way You Feel is her most popular song, a slinky bass-driven track taken from 2023’s Domino. And a very cool deep cut was her cover of Remember Me by The Trinikas—a female four-piece from the 60s that had a tragically short-lived career.
Thompson has a unique style and modern approach to soul that is quite captivating. A heady mix of sounds with the full band really leaning into it. A great live show, Thompson is one to watch.
After a short break, Jalen Ngonda took the stage, launching into Rapture, the last song from his album. Following Thompson and her big band, what was immediately evident about Ngonda was that he was performing with a stripped-back three-piece band—himself on vocals and guitar, plus bass and drums.
Anyone who’s listened to his recorded work would have heard the big, lush arrangements with strings, keys and horns. While he does often play with a bigger band, this was no doubt in part to keep touring costs low (good on him for coming to Perth!). But it was a refreshingly simple, intimate line-up that gave the songs room to breathe and shine, and it was immediately evident that this was all he needed to deliver an incredibly rich, full performance. As pristine and immaculately produced as his album is, it’s almost too polished and loses a bit of that soul, which really came to the fore in this minimal line-up.
Next up he lifted the track Don’t You Remember from his first EP back in 2018, Talking About Mary. It’s a real classic, swinging love song that you could imagine soundtracking a dance or first kiss at prom. Ngonda has a cool and charming persona, and had some good banter and sincere appreciation of the crowd, talking about how much he was enjoying his first tour of Australia.
It Takes a Fool had a bit of a different vibe, with its deep, slow, and smoky bass groove. And that voice… Not to mention some seriously smooth guitar licks! He was locked in with the music flowing through him. He’s like Soul Hendrix with a kind of effortlessness to his performance. He broke it down to just a sparse beat and raw vocal, drawing hollers from the attentive crowd, whom he soon had in the palm of his hand. Perhaps it was the quality of his performance or the older crowd, but there was a respectful silence while he played, with people hanging on his every note, knowing they were witnessing a special talent taking off.
He moved into the breezy sounds of the album title track, Come Around And Love Me. “Thanks for coming out on a school night! Hope y’all did your homework!” he joked.
New single Anyone In Love sounded amazing live, like a real time capsule to the past. His high-pitched vocals could almost be mistaken for a woman at times, hitting those notes, but he would also sometimes go low, displaying his range, sliding down to an Elvis-like growl that made the crowd go wild.
What a Difference She Made has a real classic soul sound and chord progression, with a touch of blues rock in the mix. While there are obvious comparisons to Marvin Gaye, Curtis Mayfield, and other legends of that era, Ngonda at times also evokes the virtuosity of Prince, Jimi, and even Jeff Buckley. His music sounds at once classic and familiar, yet new.
After pretending that it was his last song for the night with a wink and leaving the stage, he came back out on his own for an encore, belting out a couple of impressive solo covers of classics—first a wonderful rendition of Etta James’ My Dearest Darling before showing his range and playing Jimmy Reed’s blues standard Baby What You Want Me To Do, also famously covered by Elvis.
He introduced his rock-solid rhythm section, the McKone brothers, with James on bass and Ben on drums, and thanked the crowd for being a terrific audience. It was the last show of their Australian tour, and they were having a good time. “I wish I could play all night; I really do,” he said. And you get the sense that he really could and would given half a chance, such is the natural ease and joy in his performance.
He finished with two of the biggest tracks from his album—the beautiful golden tones of So Glad I Found You—before going out on his biggest single to date, If You Don’t Want My Love, which got a huge reaction. It sounded amazing live with an extended instrumental jam and Jalen leading the crowd along in an “If You!” callback before an incredible vocal climax.
And with a bow, he left the stage, stating, “Love you, Perth! Till next time!” It was a special evening for the lucky punters present. What a talent and what a treat. The future of soul is in safe hands with Jalen Ngonda. No doubt if he graces us with his presence again, it will be on a bigger stage.
ALFRED GORMAN
Photos by Adrian Thomson
