Allysha Joy is ripe with authenticity – she has bite, but no teeth
[ad_1]
By Elle Henriksen
Known for her voice in Melbourne-based Hip Hop group 30/70, Allysha Joy returned to the Evelyn Hotel on Thursday, November 25 to perform her solo works and a few unreleased tracks.
With the reopening of Melbourne pubs and shops, concerts are also making a much anticipated and welcome comeback. The Evelyn is a venue that knows the emerging (and rising) alternative artists well, often hosting regular concerts for locals without any publicity needed. Allysha Joy is a familiar face at the Evelyn, having stayed there in 2017 with the support of emerging local artists.
As the first post-containment concert for Joy and Evelyn, the music rocked Fitzroy like a 1999 New Years party. The stage sparkled in fluorescent lights, bathing the group in abstract visuals. As an educated keyboard player and expressive poet, Joy is humble in his performance. She remained seated at her keyboard throughout the performance, a white tulle veil draping her instrument and along the center stage. Joy paints smiles on the faces of her audience, holding their attention without staging.
Keep up to date with the latest music news, festivals, interviews and reviews here.
Joy test conducts much of his unpublished music during the concert. With her fingers extended over the keyboard, she folds melodies into the musical mix like batter; rich and viscous, moving and changing with the rhythm. His music is built with and about her. One of the unreleased tracks is a duet, Joy’s voice weaving the melody while the Conga drum breathes with simplicity. The experience was almost spiritual.
Joy’s solo career is an artistic pilgrimage to becoming a multi-faceted and confident musician. In 2018 Joy released her first solo album Acadia: Raw, the clear favorites being “Selfish” and “Know Your Power”. The full list of tracks is diverse and runs smoothly. The tracks “Honesty” and “Eagle” are influenced by Erykah Badu, while Joy’s jazz-rap lyrics curl and stretch to drive the beat. ‘Desire’ offers a dynamic, raw chorus with fantastic snare play, almost reminiscent of Georgia Anne Muldrow’s 2009 album Early. Twinkling synth presents “Enate” as a timeless ballad, but listen intently at 2:10 as the track crumbles into funky basslines and robust drum waves.
Some critics criticize Allysha Joy for being too similar to Hiatus Kaiyote’s Nai Palm. While Joy’s track “Better” could easily fit into Hiatus Kaiyote’s discography, that’s because Joy’s 2020 EP Turn it on again was produced by Hiatus Kaiyote drummer and producer Clever Austin. The overlap is real and creatively productive. The two groups transcend the artificial boundaries of genre and musical creation and have collectively organized the neo-soul and funk genre that shapes Melbourne’s soundscape.
Joy’s music is eclectic in a masterly way with unique poetics like Patti Smith and unexplored chord progressions like Blonde Redhead. Her art challenges the concept of genre, as she draws on elements of the new post punk, neo-soul and jazz funk wave to tell stories through sound and movement. In 2021, Allysha Joy released various collaborative projects with artists TOTEK, Makez, and Close Counters who challenged her own artistic reflexes.
As the lyricist who usually graces her music with hope, Joy is quite transparent in her struggles as a musician. She said making music is as âheartbreakingâ as it is satisfying, and the unreleased tracks she shared at the Evelyn are especially driven by that feeling, raw and powerful in their words and sound.
Far too soon, Joy marked the end of the show by thanking and congratulating the audience and the venue. Humble, she said “It means for us to play again and see your beautiful faces.” She invited a friend and musician Bumpy from the audience to join her in singing the brilliant lead song “Light It Again” from her 2020 EP. Joy’s voice is sharp but tender, and the instrumental pursuit at 3:55 is evident. a thick reverberation in the ears of the audience. The syncopated bass disturbs the metric balance as if it were cutting metal balls from Newton’s cradle. And beneath that thrilling bassline, the drums paralyze and crackle like amplified sounds of paint splashes. Joy’s music is full of authenticity – it has bite, but no teeth.
The uproar for an encore took Joy by surprise. Winding into the audience for a final track, she spreads the rhythm and blues in ‘Watercolors’ by Turn it on again. The joy is captivating, but not in a way that demands attention. The recorded track relies on the battery for power, but Joy drops the pace in favor of slowing the room’s heart rate.
This first comeback concert is like the euphoria of a drug addict and the confession of a Catholic. It’s the itch that can’t quite be scratched off. Melbourne has rediscovered the taste for live music and there is no going back.
Visit the Allysha Joy website for the latest info on the tour.
[ad_2]