GIG REVIEW-Abbey Rose ‘That’s your Problem’ Single Launch, 05/05/22 @ The Retreat Hotel, Brunswick
‘That’s Your Problem’ is a crash course in knowing your worth while navigating relationships. It’s RnB-Pop with a rocky flair, soulful vocals with a cocky punch, and frank lyrics that take us straight to the point
The Retreat Hotel hosted Abbey Rose, Jess Tyler and Priscilla Stanley for the Launch of ‘That’s your Problem’ a new single from Rose that is accompanied with a new music video. A Brunswick staple, the Retreat Hotel was a perfect setting for this release, with the indoor stage utilised for the intimate and engaging layout. The room invited you to dance and connect with the artist with the limited number of tables pushing the growing crowd under the disco ball hanging from the ceiling. Sitting or standing throughout the whole event, the crowd were completely entranced by the warm and exciting sounds generated on the 5th of May in Brunswick, leaving many excited for the futures of Melbourne music.
Opening the evening was Priscilla Stanley, accompanied by her guitar and some keys. She completely took everybody’s breath away. Her opening song ‘Castaway’ showed everyone what she was about, with beautiful inflection in her voice, a range that did not seem to have limits and a playfulness in the lyrics and sound that kept the crowd on their toes.
Throughout her set, Stanley would occasionally break out into these vocalised harmonies that incorporated different languages and sounds that sort of reminded me of David Byrne but with much more elegance. This was shown in her songs ‘Warrior Song’ and ‘Shadow Twin’ especially. The song ‘Shadow Twin’ was the best demonstration of her great connection to the crowd throughout, with many attendees sitting on the floors around her with very little effort she could get all 30-40 people to sing acapella with her. Paired with a great cover of ‘How Deep is Your Love’, a dedication to her father in the crowd and a closing song that with the keys took the crowd to another world, Priscilla’s unique take on soul music was an amazing opening to a wonderful night of music.
Jess Tyler then stepped up the pace with her band introducing a raft of new songs after not performing since COVID hit. With songs like ‘Homesick’ and ‘Deepen Your Roots,’ Jess introduces an upbeat jazz groove that helped transition the crowd to what was going to be a dance fuelled end to the night. Jess’s voice glided beautifully over the newly introduced drums and guitars, singing with sass and powerful tones but also transitioning to a more emotional and vulnerable state. Shown by her French inspired song that describes the feeling of having a lot of friends but not any close ones, an analysis of her early twenties that Jess connected greatly with the crowd for. Tyler then finished her set like Priscilla did, engaging the crowd to sing with her as she belted out ‘Money, Money, Money’ by ABBA. Jess’s set was the perfect display of how bands can come back to live music after months or years of hiatus, filled with energy and excitement she left the crowd excited for her upcoming music and for Abbey’s upcoming set.
As Abbey and her band prepared for their set, the crowd started converging around the stage with all the supports in the crowd along with friends. A homely feeling in this warm and worn building. Abbey and her band were grooving from the get-go. Opening with songs like, ‘How About That’, ‘Home is in your Heart’ and ‘Jealous,’ Abbey demonstrated her amazing vocals. The room was filled with Abbey’s great confidence and demeanour, not only in her voice but in her interactions with the crowd. Many laughs were had, with a constant conversation about the music and people present happening in between songs. The high tempo beginnings of this set then transitioned into a more jazz styled groove that I found to be the highlight of the night. Songs like ‘Not Interested’, ‘Chameleon Girls’ and her cover of ‘Soulja Boy/Kiss Me Through the Phone’ that connected them were electrified by the instruments that accompanied her soulful vocal changes. The lead guitar was stunning, shown by the solo in ‘Chameleon Girls’ that the crowd absolutely adored, with Abbey remarking that he ‘makes her sick’ how good he is. The set was then capped of with the newly released single ‘That’s Your Problem’ where Abbey invited her friends to sing with her on stage. The homely feeling that was present from the beginning rose to the top as the set wholesomely finished with the crowd more than entertained and excited for the future of Melbourne musicians.
Be sure to check out Abbey Rose’s new single along with the music video. Please do your part in supporting emerging artists in Melbourne and get to a gig near you! View our Gig Guide to see who else in our Community is playing around town.
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Abbey Rose | Jess Tyler | Priscilla Stanley