Saturday 8 October 2011

emmy the great live review: stanley theatre, liverpool, 7/10/11



Originally published at LSMedia

Since my first listen some months ago, I’ve always known that Emmy the Great was a talented, young musician. With an already impressive repertoire of songs under her belt and an almost naïve charm about her music, she’s an artist truly unlike any other. With this in mind, I jumped at the chance to review her live at the Liverpool University Guild and walking into the Stanley Theatre, I was both excited and intrigued to discover what her live performances would entail.

Before long Emmy appears, sporting a baggy Iron Maiden top, channeling her inner rocker it would seem. She held such a casual tone with the audience, chatting in between her songs and demonstrating what a relaxed and natural born performer she is. Playing a selection of songs from both her debut and latest album, her haunting lyrics and effortless vocals filled the hall to the extent to which you could have heard a pin drop. I don’t think I’ve ever before been at a gig where the audience are so spellbound and engrossed in an artist like they were with Emmy the Great.

My favourite performance of the night was without a doubt the song MIA. She introduced the song by speaking of how she was, in her own words, ‘pissed off’ with British singer-songwriter M.I.A after she tweeted “I’m going down to the (London) riots to hand out tea and Mars bars”. This provoked Emmy to subsequently change the lyrics of the song to reflect her anger towards the artist. The song clearly communicates her sense of frustration with the lyrics: “how long do I stay in this place, who’s going to wash all the blood from my clothes”. This raw emotion wholly illustrates a level of lyrical maturity beyond her years and demonstrates her unique ability to craft simple yet poignant lyrics that both reach out to and touch her listeners.

Another highly enjoyable and memorable performance of the night was Emmy’s cover of Weezer’s Island in the Sun. She sings every word with such conviction and passion that you would be forgiven for believing it was a song of her own creation. Accompanied by a talented range of backing singers and musicians, the on-stage chemistry that the quintet clearly have, only adds to the relaxed and casual atmosphere of the performance.

The evening itself was one to be remembered. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I don’t think I’ve ever before been at a gig where the audience are so spellbound and engrossed in an artist like they were with Emmy the Great.

Friday 7 October 2011

interview with emmy the great for liverpool student media



As I'm directed through the labyrinth of corridors beneath the Stanley Theatre at the Liverpool University Guild, I came suddenly to a dressing room with the words 'Emmy the Great' scribbled on the door with a biro. Ushered in by the stage manager, I see Emmy slumped on a sofa, sipping from a cup of tea and scrolling endlessly through her Twitter feed. "Do you mind if I go for a wee?" she says, as I find myself a seat amongst the pile of clothes strewn across the sofa.

Where did the name ‘Emmy the Great’ originally stem from?
When I was at school, this boy would call my Emmy because he knew I hated it. And when I went to university I lived with him and for some reason I gave it to myself. We used to play gigs at university and we’d play under stupid names and so I was Emmy the Great.

Being from Hong Kong and having been brought up in England, what kind of effect has this had on the music that you want to produce?
When I first moved here I wanted to be accepted and I was very middle England about it. But now, since making these albums I’ve been very accepted by Hong Kong audiences as well- it’s like, you can’t run away from where you came from. It made me very Radio 4 when I first moved here but now I’m expanding a bit and I’m like- okay, I am Asian, a bit.

How big a part has the internet played in your success, for example blogging and social networking?
It definitely takes up a lot of my time. I’m literally on Twitter all day, but I leave it running on the side while I do constructive things.

Would you say it’s played a big part in raising your profile?
I don’t know, it definitely helps me get rid of brain gremlins! You know, when I’m writing a song and I get too intensely into it. And then I check my Twitter and come back and know what the rhyme should be because you’ve taken your brain away for a bit.

A lot of your lyrics refer to other artists- you reference Leonard Cohen in ‘First Love’ and Elton John in ‘Two Steps Forward’. Is there anything you find particularly inspiring about these artists?
I reckon that was before Twitter and I couldn’t get them out of my brain. I reckon now I could just tweet something about Elton John and then go back and write a song. There’s always all this stuff in my head; my head is a compendium of today’s magazine articles, I’m just like a real magpie.

Besides other artists, what else influences and inspires your musical vision?
Themes, I think. For the last album I was really into myths and femininity, and then I wrote a bunch of songs. The next album, I’ve got different ones.

What kind of song writing process do you go through? Do you actually sit down with the intention of writing or do things come to you when you’re in the middle of something else?
At the moment, I’m writing on tour and I’ll be walking around. Well, actually I went to Japan in July on holiday but with other bands. So, when I was waiting around for them to sound-check I would write a bunch of ideas down, write a bunch of melodies down, and then I didn’t think about them until this tour. When I’m walking to sound-check I’ll be quickly trying to write a verse, and that’s how I’m doing it at the moment.

How’re you finding Liverpool? Have you had a chance to look around the city and see any of the sites?
We know it quite well because we’ve been here a few times. I’m really good friends with Eugene McGuinness and so we went to Bold Street which is in one of his songs.

In terms of albums and touring, is there anything in the pipeline?
Our Christmas album is out in December, and next year I’m going to record my new album.

Earlier this year you released your second album ‘Virtue’, how does it differ from your previous album?
It was a very instant process because I broke up with someone, finished writing it, recorded it in a very short space of time. And then toured it quite quickly.

How did you manage to focus yourself so quickly on making an album?
Because you have no choice. I had no choice because I need to tour, I need to make albums otherwise I can’t eat. Well, I can eat but I’d be eating other people’s food.

If you had three words to describe ‘Virtue’ what would they be?
FML. Fuck my life.