PALOMA FAITH + JOSEF SALVAT – BRIGHTON CENTRE 16.10.21
Whilst most of the country may feel their lives have been on hold over the past couple of years, Paloma Faith has been one busy woman. She has given birth to her second child and released her fifth album, ‘Infinite Things’ – her only album, she tells the audience, she would “buy herself”.
Most of ‘Infinite Things’ was written before lockdown, but Paloma explains that she felt some of the songs were too optimistic, even patronising she personally found them almost offensive in light of the pandemic, so she simply tore them up and started again, working in her basement studio and giving her control over the sound she wanted – something she very much wants to continue going forward.
Tonight, we catch up with Paloma at the Brighton Centre on the second half of her 26-date tour (with a little mid-tour break earlier in the month for some family time).
Josef Salvat, a friend and collaborator on Paloma’s latest album sets the scene for tonight with a perfectly formed 30 minutes of upbeat classic pop, it’s catchy and enjoyable. He announces that Brighton feels like home, and indeed he looks very much at home on stage tonight. He will be returning to Brighton on 7th March 2022, when he will be appearing at CHALK. Purchase your tickets HERE.
Paloma Faith is known for her amazingly individual eclectic style and succeeds again this evening in a fabulous black leather and white tulle combo complete with red pixie wig – fairy dust meets punk. There are no costume changes, but with an outfit like that who would want to.
The opening track tonight, ‘Last Night On Earth’ is performed with the curtain still down, Paloma standing front of stage. She seeks to sweep away the cobwebs of the past two years, urging the crowd to imagine it’s their last night on earth as “if there’s one thing we’ve learned, all we have is moments”.
As the song comes to an end, the curtain is swept away to reveal, what for Paloma, is a simple stage set and the rest of her backing band – a female dominated tightly knit group who perfectly offset Paloma’s unique vocals. The setting, it is strangely intimate, focusing on Paloma and fitting with the mood from ‘Infinite Things’.
Paloma is engaging and chatty from the start – her set is full of humour, anecdotes and insights, all delivered in her infectious east London accent. She talks of getting older and motherhood. Telling the crowd her skin has lost its elasticity – great in a plane crash apparently as all she needs to do is pull it out.
She is very proud of the new album, explaining that it is far more personal and introspective than previous releases, written about the things around her, her family, her children and her relationship, she describes it as “precious and close”. ‘Infinite Things’, the title track, is written about, and for her two children and tonight she is dedicating it ‘to all your children’.
She promises to throw in a few oldies and doesn’t disappoint, performing a medley of early songs right back to 2009 including ‘Stone Cold Sober’.
Up-tempo ‘Picking Up The Pieces’ is a crowd favourite, and despite the seating everyone is either standing or arm dancing.
Other stand-out tracks included ‘Gold’, ‘Cry Baby’, ‘Monster’, and ‘Changing’.
“And you probably know it better than me and you’ll say I don’t know how she bloody didn’t know that one” laughs Paloma – launching into a cover of Chaka Khan’s ‘I’m Every Woman’
The very personal ‘If This Is Goodbye’ brings shivers down your spine and goosebumps to your arms.
We only have one more dance and ‘Lullaby’ is her choice.
The set ends with the heart-aching anthemic hit ‘Only Love Can Hurt Like This’, and as expected the crowds’ phone lights are all on and waving in the air as Paloma signs out for another night.
She’s quirky, sassy, and with a distinctive powerhouse of a voice – you know at once it’s Paloma. After the best part of two years away from the stage, her performance is fresh, and confidence essentially oozes from her pores, enveloping her with the essential uniqueness that we love Paloma for.
If you missed her this time around, then book quickly for the 2022 ‘Age Of Optimism’ tour which looks like it’s selling fast. Purchase your tickets from www.palomafaith.com/live
Paloma Faith setlist:
‘Last Night On Earth’
‘Gold’
‘Cry Baby’
‘Infinite Things’
‘Guilty’
‘Beautiful & Damned’
‘If Loving You Was Easy’ (with Josef Salvat)
‘Stone Cold Sober’/’Stargazer’/’30 Minute Love Affair’/’New York’/’Upside Down’
‘Picking Up The Pieces’
‘Monster’
‘Can’t Rely On You’
‘I’m Every Woman’
‘Changing’
‘If This Is Goodbye’
‘Better Than This’
‘Lullaby’
‘Only Love Can Hurt Like This’
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