Nell Mescal
Imbued with the richness and honesty of life, and still prepared to call out injustices and prejudice
I guess, as someone that has grown up mostly with live music, and one who was introduced to so many musical artists over the years through live performance, that the idea of many artists now acquiring a fanbase through social media and video platforms seems, at least to me, slightly strange. I suppose Covid was partly to blame, with so many artists emerging during a time when live performance had ground to a halt, and all looking for both a new platform and an audience for their songs.
Two young singer-songwriters who began writing and releasing songs during those lockdown years are currently touring together, and on Saturday night Norwich fans got a chance to see and hear County Kildare born Nell Mescal, and English Tik-Tok star and singer songwriter Eve Christina, performing on the same stage at the Adrian Flux Waterfront Studio. For each, it was their first live gig in Norwich, although Nell Mescal had appeared at Latitude back in 2023.
Eve Christina's opening seven song set comprised a mixture of new and old material, with previous singles 'Needy' and 'Loved Out Loud' nestling between three new numbers and a cover of the Miley Cyrus hit 'The Climb'. Christina’s rich combination of emotionally raw lyrics and poetic storytelling is certainly a compelling mix, and her openness and honesty in discussing both her creative process and her relationships is truly refreshing. She closed the set with 'Amber', another highly personal song that reminded me, style wise, of both Lucy Rose and the late Lesley Duncan.
Nell Mescal's influences, on the other hand, appear to be more contemporary. Still imbued with the richness and honesty of life, and still prepared to call out injustices and prejudice, Mescal's pop sensitivities and vocal style appear to take their inspiration in part from the likes of Billie Eilish and Olivia Rodrigo, perhaps with a bit of Taylor and Miley thrown in for good measure. She does perform with a full band, but for the majority of this tour it is just her and the excellent Charlie Sinclair on guitar.
There are two brand new songs in the setlist, including 'Carried Away', due to be released on July 25th. The other is the gentle 'The Closest We'll Get', made even more beautiful with Sinclair's guitar accompaniment. But there is still room for many of the singles that Mescal has released over the last four years, including 'Teeth', 'In My Head' and 'Warm Body', a song filled with a candid and tender account of growing up and becoming a woman. Another powerful song is 'Thin', a potent plea for truth, real values and connections.
On the basis of tonight's show, I clearly need to get out less, and spend more time listening to Tik Tok videos on my phone. Who knew that so much songwriting talent was just a sim-card and a broadband connection away? Only joking.
