Georgia Potter, KillbotKindergarten, Hunz @ The Zoo,Brisbane (10/02/2011)

Sun 13th Feb, 2011 in Gig Reviews

Suck it America and England! You may have Norah Jones and Amy Winehouse, but we have Australia’s answer in young Georgia Potter. Sure, all three are soulful chicks that can belt out a croon like no one’s business, and each weave intrinsic melodies and have terrific live presence, but as an added plus, Georgia Potter raps.

The audience felt a real sense of inclusion from the very beginning of the night at The Zoo when during opening band Killbot Kindergarten ’s set the band realised they wouldn’t have time to perform their key song. Hearing this, Potter burst out from behind a curtain like a cartoon fairy and insisted they continue. It’s a good thing they did, as the song turned out to be the highlight of their set – a Korean pop song that sounded like an oriental No Doubt tune. The crowd glowed as Potter weaved in and out between people dancing and darting around like she was on a sugar high. The rest of their set was a weird blend of asian powerpop, funk and a hint of jazz thrown in for good measure. For their first live performance ever, Killbot held the crowd’s attention with their unique sound, and with some refining of their set list they could have some serious clout.

The next band was a surprising choice for opening Potter’s set. Three-piece Hunz , for a couple of bars of one song anyways, sounded like an angry blend of Children Collide and Sleigh Bells but ultimately lacked the same polish. The most obvious drawback for the band was vocalist Hans van Vliet, and perhaps he was having an off night because he hid his voice behind layers of reverb and echo effects and it didn’t bury the fact that he wasn’t singing in key. There was a great instrumental song halfway through the longish set, but overall the audience remained uninterested.

After a short wait, Potter danced onstage with her band of giant friends. If the objective was to intentionally make Potter look tiny, then mission accomplished, but the one thing that filled the room was her massive voice. It carried every run perfectly, every nuance expertly treated and every rap delivered with rapid-fire gusto. The second song, Got It On, proved to be her most mainstream number of the evening with a clean guitar lick carrying the song alongside strong male and female backing vocals.

Her third song Freedom Without Reason slowed the speed of the band down a little, but managed to keep the same energy pulsing through the band. Potter chatted to the crowd, admitting her time was short and she would endeavour to fill it with as much music as she could. Her candour was refreshing, and her interactions with the crowd charming.

Two other songs in particular show her musical breadth. Only Got One darkly struts along with a pulsing bass line until after she implores to the audience in song that time is running out, the guitar starts to moan and the piano synthesiser starts to freak out. Amidst all this chaos, Potter begins to melodically scream, “I’ve only got one day!” She brings the band together as a unit here, in a way that showcases them as a live band and herself as a composer.

Her other standout song was a cover of Local God by Everclear. It’s a fun tune with a great guitar riff that immediately set a ripple of excitement and a collective smile across the audience.

Post-show, Potter invited the entire audience down the road to a bar for some dancing and frivolity, adding that she would happily call up various workplaces to people out of work the next day.

Norah and Amy wouldn’t have done that.