A whole night dedicated to females artists at Unplugged & Intimate, a weekly showcase of local talent held at the Cellar Bar underneath South Hill Park Arts Centre in Bracknell and boy was I glad to have ventured out on this chilly Tuesday June evening.
I’ve heard good things about Abbie Lathe but never before had the pleasure of hearing her, I wasn’t disappointed and she more than lived up to the whispers. Soulful in a folky way... and a laid back disposition that would be at home at any festival.
Next up, Australian Lisa Fitzgibbon, a friend of Abbie’s and a new face to U&I. Equally as earthy as her predecessor with an added rawness that demanded you do not stop paying attention – as Smokey found out when his mobile phone went off as she began her song! Lisa stopped in her tracks waiting for him to finish his call and went on to cleverly abuse him for his rudeness by subtly adapting her lyrics. Although she dealt with this heckler with experience and style, the ‘little girl’ inside coupled with an enormous intensity shone through during her second song ‘Dog’.
Lisa dedicated this track to the voice apparent inside all of us at times that says everything we try will fail, referring to the insecurities we all carry with us; and addressing a room full of musicians couldn’t have made this more relevant and real...her raw-fire energy and powerful stage presence ordered we give her our complete interest.
Her delivery and composition were innovative, creative and exasperating and her lyrics believable and revealing. This ballsy lady dominated her little corner of this intimate venue and although she presented with a tough urban feminism on the exterior, Lisa also displayed an endearing vulnerability, fragile but fierce, troubled but strong. Move over the likes of Alanis, Sheryl Crow, Janis Joplin, Joni Mitchell and even Skin (Skunk Anansie) and make room for Lisa Fitzgibbons because given a chance this woman could transform our opinions of the angst-ridden female singer/songwriter and bring it into the 21st Century. Why is she not signed?