One of the most under-rated artists, Sara Bareilles, on the final leg of her Little Black Dress tour, performed at the Athanaeum Theatre in Melbourne on September 20th. I am going to go as far to say it was the best concert I’ve attended. From beginning to end, I was in absolute awe.
Before I even begin talking about Bareilles, there’s reason to talk about her support act, Melbourne artist Ben Abraham. I’m a hard person to please when it comes to support acts - I always go in expecting something mediocre. Ben Abraham was incredible. The story behind how he was given the opportunity to perform with Bareilles is even more inspiring. Abraham created a video back in 2011, where he wrote and performed a song called To Sara, from Ben. His wish was to sing with Sara Bareilles when she supported Maroon 5 in Melbourne. Bareilles, after many fans sent Ben’s video to her on Twitter, got in contact with Ben and allowed him to sing with her at Rod Laver Arena. From there, the two became friends, and now Sara has even gone so far as to co-write and perform a duet with Ben on his debut album (which is yet to be released). How cool is that?! Back to the concert. Ben Abraham’s music is so soulful and raw, and there was not one song that I wasn’t blown away by. His lyrics were so meaningful, and the melodies were equally as moving. He has a pop-up show at the Gasometer Hotel on September 30, so I’d recommend seeing him live.
Sara Bareilles came on at 9pm. A great ball of energy, Sara was so interactive with the crowd, telling personal stories about being nominated for Album of the Year at the Grammys, her battle with depression, and just providing a bit of banter here and there. Her signature use of the f-word made her stories that little bit more hilarious.
Stories aside, her performance was amazing. I always enjoy and appreciate more intimate concerts where the artist can sit down with one instrument and truly showcase their voice. Bareilles did just this. She played guitar, ukulele, and piano at different points of the night. She played an equal balance of old and new songs, from a stripped-down version of Uncharted, to the up-beat King of Anything, to the sweet sound of I Choose You. She also covered Sia’s Chandelier, which was so incredible. Her vocal performance was flawless. She has such a clean and distinguished tone when she sings. It was so beautiful to listen to. If this doesn't sell Bareilles to you, she called Ben Abraham back onto the stage mid-concert and performed the duet he wrote with her (called This Is On Me), then kept him on stage and allowed him to sing December and Chasing the Sun with her.
I absolutely love Sara Bareilles, and she is a musician who - in my opinion - is not as acknowledged as she should be. For all of you who have not yet listened to Bareilles’ music, here are a few of my personal favourite songs which I think you should check out:
-N
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