We were promised big voice , big bass and big hair from a gig by Bristol singer Eva Lazarus on her first headline tour . Eva , backed by an impressive band , proved to be much more than that and thrilled a sell out Sneekys crowd with a set showcasing her new long player Brandy Kisses. Eva stated this was more about vibe than genre and pulled no punches with a set featuring funk , hip hop , dancehall and jungle. Coupled with a radiant smile and enthusiasm , Sneekys was the place to be on the first really dreich night of a long Edinburgh winter.
The solo albums have arrived after a long career collaborating with some of the country’s top artists taking Eva to Glastonbury and other festivals . She shot to prominence with her 2017 single Amsterdam which featured local Scotch Bonnet favourites Mungos Hifi . On the night , Amsterdam was one of the strongest songs with the capacity crowd cutting a mean groove in cramped surroundings.
Brandy Kisses dropped on 8 September ( available at the merch stand ) and is worth a listen . Lionness shows the depths of Eva’s lyrics and the river does indeed run deep . How am I looking had the crowd stomping and On God was a complex work of hip hop. It was the dancehall that lifted the roof of the room and great to see a young Edinburgh audience digging the groove.
In a thoroughly professional set even a collapsing keyboard stand did not cause the band to break stride. The keyboard player slid onto the floor without missing a note and Eva replaced an errant cable without skipping a lyric . Such super powers should not be underestimated.
A couple of gigs remain on the tour before Eva returns to Belgium and these are worth checking out. Vibe before genre – absolutely!
