Supporting Joshua Radin, Indie-folk songstress Lissie put on a fantastic performance at The Thekla in Bristol.
The Thekla is a floating venue in Bristol, and while the size of the 400-capacity venue is deceiving, it provides an intimate experience thanks to everyone being close to the stage. You can even get away without a mic, as Joshua Radin demonstrated later in the night. Lissie came on after The Staves, a fabulous sister trio, and had a warm welcome from the audience. Although her singles “In Sleep” and “Little Lovin’ ” have been getting airplay, I got the impression few people knew of her.
Lissie has a very laid-back country look about her. That said, there was nothing overly laid-back about her set. She delivered a mighty performance considering it was a reasonably short 25-minute set.
She kicked off after a short introduction and chat with Wedding Bells, which highlights that subtle fragility she has to her voice, like a cross between Patsy Cline and Neko Case. It was a beautiful yet sad track to open to, but from this point on she had the audience in her hand. While many may have been hearing Lissie for the first time, she had a very confident stage presence, portraying no sign of nerves at all. She seemed totally at ease up there on stage, like she was there to have fun like the rest of us.
Some of the tracks were very stripped down which while showing off her great vocals also served to demonstrate how quiet and enraptured the audience were. I didn’t hear anyone talk through her songs which, as many of you know, is a rare thing in gigs these days.
Her band were on great form throughout with Lissie allowing them their chance to shine through a diverse set both in tempo and emotion. One minute you have a lump in your throat then she’s got you stamping your feet along to one belter of a song.
It was a great set, my biggest regret being that it was so short. I’m looking forward to hearing more, she most certainly deserves a wider audience.
When I’m Alone
Ramona
Lissie has an album called “Catching a Tiger” due out in June but her EP is available on Columbia now.