The roof was lifted off the Sage on Saturday night as one of the UK's most exciting musicians took to the stage.
Sheffield singer-songwriter Rebecca Lucy Taylor, better known as Self Esteem, has come a long way since going solo from Slow Club in 2017. She was named the BBC Introducing Artist of the Year and has been nominated for Brit and NME awards, while her second album, Prioritise Pleasure was shortlisted for the Mercury Music Prize alongside local lad Sam Fender.
She's also written the score to theatre show Prima Facie, starring Jodie Comer, played numerous festivals, and performed on the Late Late Show with James Corden in January. And almost 17 months after Prioritise Pleasure, which was the Guardian's number one album of 2021, she took to the stage at the Sage Gateshead, and it was well worth the wait.
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With a revolutionary sound, she takes infectious pop melodies and packs them with searingly honest lyrics, which do everything from spreading a message of loving yourself and body positivity to taking aim at toxic relationships and the effects of the patriarchy. Mixing spoken word with an incredible voice, her songs stay in your head for more than just their tune... at least they have done for me.
However, before Self Esteem took to the stage there were two support acts: Tom Rasmussen and Mega. Drag queen and vogue columnist Rasmussen got the crowd going with danceable ballroom-scene inspired pop with a powerful message of trans inclusion off their upcoming debut album Body Building.
They were followed by MEGA, who admitted it was her first time visiting Newcastle. Her voice soared over the laid back guitars and languid rhythms that her percussionist beat on the box on which he was sat.
And then it was time for the main event, and from the first beats of prioritise pleasure, the crowd were up on their feet - which is how the majority stayed all night. Both Self Esteem and her backing band started off in similar, if not identical, grey suits and while the backing dancers were at the forefront, her magnetic stage presence affirmed her as the main star of the show.
The crowd screamed back the lyrics to her next number, f***ing wizardry, whilst she was full of laughter and smiles as she performed moody. After just kids came the first of handful of costume changes (though sadly there was no sign of the Boots Advantage Card dress she wore at Glastonbury in 2019), a red bodice, flared pants and a cowboy hat; while masked dancers went wild under the red lights.
For how can I help you, Taylor took to the drums, as she had in Slow Club, atop a set of stairs that were used throughout the performance. This routine, as all on the night, had been so tightly choreographed and the dancers were so in sync, there was an element of the theatre to everything.
However, Self Esteem proved that she doesn't need all the bells and whistles to completely captivate the audience. For the slower number John Elton, it was just her (in a new suit), the guitar and that amazing voice.
That enabled the audience to catch its collective breath in a poignant moment before the tempo was ramped up again for the final few songs, with almost everyone punching the air on you forever.
Self Esteem joked with the audience throughout the night, but the funniest moment came when she forgot the lyrics in the spoken word section of arguably her best known hit I do this all the time. Acknowledging the audience through her laughter, she got back on track and seamlessly weaved "don't ask for a refund" into the song.
Though she'd said they band were definitely not coming back on through more laughter, of course there was an encore. I'm fine, the best and still reigning, capped off a fantastic gig, with Taylor clearly moved by the reception from the Geordie audience.
There's a lyric in f***ing wizardry that says "part of being funny is having some sincerity," and for me that extended to the whole of the performance. Self Esteem came across as genuine, authentic and sincere throughout.
It was so obvious that she loved what she was doing and despite having the crowd in the palm of her hand for the whole night, she was self deprecating and showed vulnerability whilst giving an absolutely stellar performance. When a third album comes along and she returns to the North East (neither of these are confirmed, but we can hope), get yourself along - though you'll probably be paying more than tonight's surprisingly low £22 ticket price.
Most of the remainder of the UK tour is sold out - though there are still tickets available for Cambridge and Hull, before festivals in the UK, US and Portugal during the summer. For more information, visit the Self Esteem website.
Did you go to Self Esteem's gig at The Sage? What did you think? Let us know!
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