Weyes Blood live review: an evening of ethereal magic
An angel descended upon Leeds last night. After bracing the cold wind that wrapped itself around us while we queued to enter the O2 Academy, my friend and I were soon transported to a mystical realm as we witnessed an entrancing performance by Weyes Blood.
Upon arrival, we were told that my press tickets gave us front-row access to the balcony, making a change from my usual preference of standing among the crowd in the thick of the atmosphere. However, for a show like Weyes Blood (real name Natalie Mering), this couldn’t have been more perfect.
In the company of my closest friend, we completely relaxed in our seats as though we were special guests at a fancy opera, given the perfect view of the singer’s glorious stage set-up. Fake candle arrangements decorated the stage, creating a devotional atmosphere – it was clear we were in for a transformative, sacred experience.
Although separated from the crowd below, which was much more male-centric than I anticipated, I didn’t mind too much. Merling’s performance felt so personal – as if her voice was shooting a laser beam straight from her heart into mine – that my surroundings melted away. For 90 minutes, nothing mattered apart from Merling’s ethereal collection of songs, which included a good mix of tracks from Titanic Rising, And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow, and Front Row Seat to Earth.
Merling, wearing a shimmering dress and cape, floated around the stage, occasionally stopping to give a charmingly awkward kick of her leg. She commanded the room with gracious ease, engaging in humorous chat between songs, such as dedicating a track to Chumbawamba and asking the crowd their opinions on astrology.
Before performing ‘Movies’, one of her most astoundingly beautiful songs, Merling asked if anyone had brought DVDs with them, leading to copies of The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie and Big Fish being passed through the crowd and into the singer’s hands. Merling switched between lighthearted crowd engagement and transfixing, gut-wrenchingly gorgeous performances with an effortlessness only possessed by seemingly otherworldly beings.
For ‘Oh God, Turn Me Into A Flower’, a bright light shone from the back of the stage and through Merling’s dress as she turned her back to the crowd, allowing the dreamy instrumentals to wash over us. If that wasn’t enough to get tears flowing, her performance of ‘Movies’ was a guaranteed emotion-stirrer. Everyone appeared hypnotised as blue lighting, akin to ocean waves, glimmered over the white of Merling’s dress before a montage of film clips projected behind her. I glanced at my friend, who was wiping away tears from her eyes, overwhelmed by the sheer magic that emanated from the stage.
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