NewsItem
Nilufer Yanya
Manchester Academy 2 - Dec 5th
07 Dec 2024
Nilufer Yanya ended her tour of the Method Actor album at Manchester's Academy to a raptured audience on Thursday night. With support from modern day one man band and boyfriend of Nilufer, Eli smart.
Last night of the tour playing with the band that she recorded the album with. She has star quality poise and presence.
To open with the lead song from the album that I guess most people would have come to see was a bold and strong move. A great song but then you could be worried that it would be downhill from there. But it wasn’t. Method actor was greeted with love and excitement from the packed Academy 2 crowd. You could tell straight away that the place was full to the brim with fans.
A 5 piece band, Nilufer singing (obviously) and playing guitar. Sax / Keyboard / Backing singing from Jazzi Bobbi Driessen. Bass guitar slow groove but getting heavier and resonating around the hall. I think this place has great acoustics for Bass Guitar (I saw Steve Mason of Beta band fame here a few years ago and the bass sounded awesome, especially compared to the recordings) played by Beth O’Lenahan. Guitars by Will Archer who also produced the album. Drums, but couldn’t see them from where I was standing, by Ellis Dupey.
Nilufer looked cool as f*ck. Black jacket zipped up and short black skirt and with a calm presence soaking it all up. At times during instrumental bits head back just feeling it, calm as anything, but poised and ready hit the mark.
Like I say Like I Say Like I Say. I run away. About 5 songs in the other biggest song, Guitars so heavy at the right bits. There is something about the blend of her voice the rhythms of the drums the acoustic guitar and the heavier guitars in the chorus. I don’t know enough about music to describe what it is, but sitting on a beach on a far away island in the sun with a sea breeze but with heavy guitars. I don’t know if South Pacific with Radiohead playing Creep somewhere in the background is a good analogy but that what pops into my head.
Beautiful guitar on Binding from long time writing collaborator and producer Will (Wilma) Archer. These guys have got such a special flavour, I don’t know what it is, Umami maybe? But it’s her voice, sweet deep and full, her accent, electropop undertones on some songs e.g. Made out of Memory, it all adds to the unique sound. Occasional guitar parts remind me of the Cure, maybe In Between Days acoustic. On Just a Western with a real bass groove down low.
I loved the Saxophone, particularly on Call it Love. Jazzi Bobbi has got it in abundance, and you could see a real connection between her and Nilufer.
There is a movement that says every band should play one cover at every gig. Some follow it and some don’t but the BBC’s live lounge and others for example show that putting a song that you like or love in the hands of fantastic musicians who want to do justice can have epic results. If they then show how great the song is and really do it justice, not just ape the original but display it from a new angle and make you love it even more. The first part of the encore was a cover of PJ Harvey’s ‘Rid Of Me’ from the 1993 Album of the same name – justice was done, I loved it.