By snoadmin
Everyone fell a little bit more in love with Kate Nash, the dainty but clouded songbird from London, as she rounded up her first ever concert tour in America at the world famous Troubadour in West Hollywood.
Nash is the latest British pop-invader to come to the States to mystify American girls with a cute English accent and witty songs of teenage angst, heartache and complication. Following the footsteps of London-born singer/songwriter Lily Allen and her success in America, Nash recently released her full-length debut album, “Made of Bricks,” with Geffen record label.
It was only last year after being rejected by Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, the once aspiring actress traded in her scripts and picked up her guitar instead. Putting her songs on her MySpace profile, Nash quickly grew a Web fan base and the rest is history.
Like tightly technicolored sardines, the jam-packed audience swarmed into the small venue on the evening of Jan. 14 for an intimate sold-out concert from the 20-year-old blue-dressed beauty.
Fresh-faced girls lined the stage, as clusters of vintage clad poptarts, L.A. scene kids and regular ole’ folk filled the back. Bits of English jargon could be heard from all corners of the room.
To the whimsical tune of “Wizard of Oz,” Nash skipped her way on to the center of the stage. Gracefully, she made her way to the piano and began with her song, “Mariella.”
Nash performed song after song with a raw spirit, as if untouched by the limelight from her recent stardom. With a stage presence so inhibited, it was as if the audience were eavesdropping on Nash in her shower, belting out witty lyrics in the safety of her London flat.
Those in the audience who hadn’t swooned over Nash during the first half of the concert must have found the sweet song “The Nicest Thing” hard to resist. As she strummed her guitar on the side of the stage, she captured the heartache of withering away unnoticed from the eye of a crush. “All I know is that you’re the nicest thing I’ve ever seen / I wish that we could see if we could be something.” Although her words were simplistic, her delicate yet booming voice set the crowd silent.
Besides her genuine lyrics and vintage charm, the songstress and band of three stylish pretty boys delivered a fairly successful yet unpolished concert. Nash, with her quirky behavior – giggling to herself, making weird popping noises with her tongue and speaking English gibberish between songs – made her seem amateur. But, unlike many artists today, who are products of the corporate machine, there was a refreshing sense that this girl was the real deal.
Toward the end of the concert, Nash performed her well-known pieces. “Foundations,” with its smooth piano undercurrent and poetic lyrics (“My fingertips are holding on to the cracks in our foundation / And I know that I should let go, but I can’t”), was performed perfectly.
