Tune-Yards (or tUnE-yArDs if you want to go with the stylised way of writing it) pretty much exploded onto the scene last year, gaining quite a bit of attention with the release of their second album w h o k i l l. The brainchild of frontwoman Merrill Garbus, she started the project alone utilising looping pedals to create drum beats and combining elements of R&B and afro-beat. The live lineup nowadays includes bass player Nate Brenner (who often assists with percussion and synths as well) and two saxophone players, which really helps to fill out the sound and add a lot of funk and energy to Garbus’ live performances.
It was amazing to watch Garbus create the live drum and vocal loops so effortlessly on stage, never once seeming to misstep. Right from the opening, the four-piece displayed a high level of energy and excitement which was helped greatly by the enthusiastic crowd who cheered, danced and shouted lyrics. They played most songs from their latest effort w h o k i l l, with the standouts being ‘Es-So’, ‘Gangsta’ and ‘My Country’. However, the real highlight (unsurprisingly) was ‘Bizness’, which is easily one of Garbus’ most impressive vocal performances where she changes between registers and between a soft whimper to a bellowing howl with such ease. The softly spoken frontwoman politely thanked the crowd for coming out on a Sunday night, but it seemed all too appropriate to thank her back for coming out to play such a marvelous show in the first place. It was refreshing to see this calibre of performer who approaches music in such a unique way. The entire band gave a downright flawless performance in all respects and was easily one of the best shows I’ve seen in a long time.
