It's Sunday evening and BBC 6 Music Festival is coming to an end. O2 Victoria Warehouse is hosting its third headline show of the weekend just 14 hours after the festival's Rave Forever club night finished and so the atmosphere in the venue is somewhat sleepy.
The exquisite reggae covers played by DJ Don Letts set the tone for the final night of the festival as the songs summon some to sway. But support act The Big Moon struggle to warm up the slightly sombre crowd – although the all-female foursome are as fun as ever.
Anticipation builds as presenter Tom Robinson introduces the headliner – Arlo Parks. He praises the 22-year-old performer whose melancholic music provided an apt soundtrack for the pandemic, giving hope to a generation at a time when we all needed it most.
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Dressed in yellow and black with her short hair dyed red, the softly-spoken singer-songwriter tells the audience of the 'special' energy and emotion she has previously experienced in Manchester. She returns to the city for what is her first headline slot at a music festival.
The post-millennium baby first caught the attention of the host broadcaster when she uploaded 'bedroom' demos to the BBC Music Introducing website at the age of 17. Two EPs, a Mercury Prize winning album and an unforgettable Glastonbury performance later, the critically acclaimed London-born artist is now preparing to release her second studio album - 'My Soft Machine' - later this year.
So far, she has released two singles from the new LP, the second of which she performs live for the first time. Floating around the stage expressively throughout, the artist explains that Impurities is her 'first purely happy song' – but musically its style is still serene.
Fans are receptive to her instructions to 'scream' the lyrics to Caroline, while the opportunity to boogie to the most 'danceable' song of the set, Too Good, is lapped up. But the energy on stage isn't always mirrored by the admiring audience many of whom are silent.
The set which lasts over an hour is peppered with songs old and new as well as several surprises. The xx singer Romy is invited onto the stage for a beautifully harmonised rendition of Black Dog and Arlo's voice cracks when she explains what the duet means to her.
For the encore, Arlo tells the audience of her love for the latest album by Fontaines D.C. and invites drummer Tom Coll to play Sophie. Like Loyle Carner who was first to headline the festival on Friday, the endlessly talented artist even recites some poetry during the set.
The final number of the night was the first track to be released after the artist's award-winning album 'Collapsed in Sunbeams' – however, the single does not feature on her latest LP. "I feel like it's always such a euphoric moment for everyone," she says of Softly.
As the final song finishes, the audience rhythmically waves goodbye as the singer leaves her brilliant band to play the song out. It's a fitting end to the festival which now calls Greater Manchester its permanent home because, as Arlo says, the city never disappoints.
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