Aldous Harding
When most of her 2022 EU and UK tour was rescheduled amidst continuing uncertainty over COVID-19, New Zealand singer songwriter Aldous Harding's gig at the UEA Adrian Flux Waterfront was one of the dates that got pulled. Finally, twelve months on, and she finally made it to Norwich, much to the delight of the capacity Norwich audience tonight.
The original dates were timed to conicide with the release of 'Warm Chris', Harding's fourth album, and tonight's setlist was still made up largely of songs from that record, with all but one of the ten tracks making the cut, and the first three ('Ennui', Tick Tock', and 'Fever') providing the opening triage. In her stage outfit of black tunic and trousers, her probing stare and all-seeing stage presence reminded both of Ninja warrior and a startled deer. Choosing to sit to play quieter numbers on acoustic guitar, she manspreads purposefully, yet allows her left foot to perform petite, neat rhythmic dance movements. When standing, she has a tendency to stare into the far distance, as if completely unaware of her audience. And there is little between-song interaction – no 'Hello Norwich, how you doin'?', no introductions, anecdotes or explanations. And yet, Harding is totallly mesmerising on stage, a complete enigma.
The band consists of two keyboard players, guitars and a drummer who, on 'Fever' somehow manages to play flugelhorn whilst still keeping the beat going. On 'Fixture Picture', from the 2019 album 'Designer', there is live Mellotron backing, an instrument I haven't seen on stage since attending a Moody Blues concert many decades ago.
And yet there are times when the carefully-worn mask almost slips, and a brief smile escapes from her mouth, a sign, perhaps, that she really is enjoying the evening as much as we all are. Her introspective blend of folk-pop is delivered with such nonchalence and a deliberate sense of detachment that it reminds me at times of Dry Cleaning's Florence Shaw. Not entirely a surprise, considering producer John Parish worked on all of Aldous Harding's last three albums, and on both Dry Cleaning releases. There are also moments that remind of Welsh musician Cate LeBon (her guitarist, and opening support H Hawkline has collaborated musically with both), and the whole performance has a running sense of David Byrne and Talking Heads, as well as a touch of Nico and a slice of Lou Reed.
The sound throughout is excellent, although there was a moment, just after the “un, deux, trois, quatre” count-in to 'Passion Babe', when Harding's vocal intonations had me wondering if she was actually singing the whole song in French. Best bit of audience participation came from the girl at the back who nailed it with the “Hey!” responses to 'Imagining My Man', and most innovative percussion goes to Aldous Harding's use of drumstick on coffee mug during 'Old Peel'.
Closing song, the slightly eerie 'Leathery Whip', was followed by an encore rendition of the title track from 2019's 'Designer', and that was it. Aldous Harding had come, she had seen, and she had conquered Norwich, whilst remaining entirely within an orbit of her own design. Anyone who can write such meaningless lyrics as “Show the ferret to the egg” ('The Barrel'), “You can have the pelican, swim him 'til the river's clean” ('Passion Babe') and “Hot clown and the creek is turning” ('Old Peel'), yet still make them sound so damned beautiful, is good with me. Loved the show, loved the support set from H Hawkline, and loved the entire enigmatic presence of Aldous Harding tonight at The Waterfront.
