“I’m not sure I’ll ever see something like it again.”
For the United States, their recent ‘Homecoming Queen’ came in the form of Beyonce. For us in the United Kingdom, our’s came last week in the form of the emphatic FKA Twigs. Having disappeared from the musical fray over the past 5 years, the English singer-songwriter was scarcely to be found in spite of her vehement following hungry for her avant blend of R&B, electronic, and pop. Since 2012, her shortened discography of a single LP and 3 EPs garnered impressive soundwaves, eventually collaborating with ASAP Rocky and influencing the seminal likes of Arca, SOPHIE, and Sampha. Yet her latest track released last month, ‘Cellophane’, tore listeners apart with her signature soprano vocal delivery and further dilapidated them with the announcement of this London show - her first in 4 years.
For the sheer magnitude of this evening, Twigs set out for a slow-burner introduction to her set - not only through a 30-minute delay but also through the breezy ease of such electro-R&B tracks as ‘Hide’, ‘Water Me’, and ‘Pendulum’. Delayed, electronically-skewed vocal notes formed the basis of the hypnotic middle track with the latter staging this hypnotism as a viable platform for Twigs’ heart-wrenching lyricism. “So lonely trying to be yours, running through sliding doors” only proved to be the tip of the twigsberg heartache strewn throughout much of her discography, and similar to Kate Bush, burgeoning her fragile charisma to the fore.
Twigs’ entourage of dancers eventually joined the fray of emotional turmoil through ‘Figure 8’ and ‘Video Girl’, both of which exemplified Twigs’ equal impetus on stylistic dancing, as well as the musicalities on offer tonight. For the sparse instrumentation on stage, it was ultimately the range and prowess of Twigs’ vocals which was splurged amongst the topsy-turvy nature of the former track and intricacies of the latter, showcasing such a wide breadth of musical talents.
In spite of her undeniable vocal talent, Twigs couldn’t always showcase its prowess - primarily straying into the backdrop for ASAP Rocky’s track ‘Fukk Sleep’. Revelling in its obvious trap beats and 808's humming, Twigs was ultimately confined to background ‘wailing’ which transcended into the similarly unimpressive track of ‘Papi Pacify’. Whilst Twigs’ 2-part backing band were finally revealed by this point, the return to her hypnotically-monotonous facade filtered into much of the set’s mid-section exuding a more ‘background music’ tagline.
Yet for all the theatrics tied into much of Twigs' repertoire, her bow-out for this evening proved exceptional. Featuring some of her most popular tracks to date, ‘Lights On’ and ‘Two Weeks’, Twigs proved her breath-of-fresh-air influence on the genre half a decade ago, incorporating sumptuous basslines with the mingling of intimately insouciant lyricism. Both tracks admirably took hold of the reverberating effects of Alexandra Palace’s capaciousness, with the former’s emphatic crescendo of distorted electronic bleeps into the latter’s soaring chorus sections showcasing her elongated emotional spectrum.
Without missing a single beat or sentiment, Twigs’ finale of her latest track ‘Cellophane’ proved its merit as one of the most compelling singles of this year. The smacking of her lips, the trembling vibrato, the heartwrenching delivery coalesced into her microphone, intricately layering the track as a magnanimous ballad. With Twigs exclaiming “I just want to feel you there, and I don’t want to have to share our love”, the stunned silence from the crowd in these fragile moments exemplified the powerful aura to this homecoming show - excavating each and every emotion known to queenkind.
Tonight, the U.K’s ‘Queen’ at last returned home with an indelible comeback set showcasing her life’s trials and tribulations. Admirably, her set equally incorporated the expressionistic and dramatic choreography to bolster her delicate musicalities - visually exerting Twigs’ music upon the sold-out followers held up in a constant state of awe. Whilst I’d personally want to see more inclusion from Twigs’ backing band into her live set, the show was ultimately about FKA Twigs - exuding an unparalleled soprano vocal range, countless costume changes in between tracks, and extravagant pole dancing amidst a frenzy of emotions. All of these facets ultimately left her mark as one of the most pertinently stylised pop artists of this decade - influencing a slurry of current acts and ultimately sliding herself back into home comforts.
8/10
FKA Twigs’ latest single, Cellophane, is out now and can be found here.
All photos are courtesy of Mahaneela whose work can be found here.