Marina and The Diamonds sparkled in the Nottingham Trent Student’s Union on the 7th, dazzling the crowd with a treasure chest full of pop goodness.
Cocknbullkid was first on and as the name suggests, lead singer Anita Blay had no issue grabbing the bull by the horns. She strutted about like a champion peacock, took ownership of the stage and bounced gloriously through a set of electro pop tunage.
Her new album One Eye Closed is out on the 8th of November and if it captures the essence of her live show then the general public and her true fans are in for a real treat.
Marina came on after a small interval to an ear throbbing round of applause. Looking as glamorous as ever she approached the mic to serenade the crowd with her velvety voice, and struck into lead track Family Jewels with great aplomb.
It is hard to define the typical Marina crowd, but she seems to have the appeal that transcends the usual classifications, she is neither too commercial, nor too esoteric- she is just right. In this way she manages to bring in all sorts of people from out of the wilderness, a great and diverse spectrum of the community come to see her in the flesh.
The were a number of arty student types rocking out in their mock marina clobber, fixing their fringes at regular intervals, metronomes inbuilt into their unconscious minds.
There were also a number of couples who had clearly left the kids with the babysitter for the night and then there were some older couples dawdling about who hadn’t needed a babysitter in some years.
The gig was sold out but there was a surprising amount of space to move and imitate some of Marina‘s spectacular dance moves. The atmosphere behind the first few rows was pretty uninspiring and lacked the elevated experience that was available at the very front with th Marina nuts. The younger people had squeezed together there and were all loving every minute of it.
Rootless, Hermit and I am Not A Robot came in quick succession halfway through the set and really got the crowd electrified, some toe taping could be discerned further back, but this flurry of songs really seemed to ignite something in the crowd. Everyone insantly relax into the night and Marina seemed to sense this, as her performance went on to another level thereafter.
Marina is a real show girl, she has that mentality and creativity to produce a real spectacle under the vibrant lighting and magnificent backdrop. The 25 year old ensation even has time to spice things up with a multitude of speedy outfit changes. As the evening went on it only got better and people were really getting into the groove, even the new songs no one knew caused a small commotion.
The Welsh singer demonstrated some witty in-song banter with the crowd and you could tell she was genuinely grateful for the success of the last 18 months and for the role her fans have played in her rise to prominence.
The encore produced the most fervent of reactions from the crowd as Marina and The Diamonds played their biggest hit to date, Hollywood.
With it’s bubble gum electro pop sound exploding and that infectious chorus ringing out, it was impossible not to join in with the gaiety.