Article + Photos by Omar Kasrawi
Every singer should be as joyous and in command of the magnetic smile plastered across Skye Edwards’ face. That’s the feeling you get after attending a Morcheeba concert.
Playing their second show of this small U.S. tour, their first Stateside gigs in five years, meant an audience ready to burst with anticipation. And the duo of lead singer Skye Edwards and guitarist Ross Godfrey made sure that feeling didn’t go unrewarded.
The band, touring in support of their latest record, Blaze Away, thrilled the crowd with a slew of hits, as well as songs off that record.
Morcheeba, who came to fame in the trip-hop fueled late 90s always seemed to differentiate themselves from their peers by embracing more pop/funk forces. As opposed to the electro filled the darkness of Massive Attack, or the moody orchestral etherealness of Portishead, Morcheeba always felt like the joyful noise in that space. One still rings present in their performances some 20+ years later.
Edwards was effortlessly charming with a voice that needs no studio production at all. And her stage presence is one that just radiates happiness. Whether she’s shimmying across the stage and rubbing shoulders with Godfrey, or introducing her son Jaega Mckenna-Gordon on drums, she clearly revels in performing. Godfrey manned the right side, peeling off one memorable guitar lick after the other.
The band sounded tight, and except for bass that seemed to be overpowering the speaker system, it would be hard to find a fault in the evening. The crowd was singing along non-stop with Morcheeba on classics such as “The Sea”, “Big Calm” (for which the band brought out opener Jason Furlow aka Nosaj to reprise his vocals from the album), and “Rome Wasn’t Built in a Day”.
The whole night reflected the opening lyrics in Morcheeba’s “Love Sweet Love” that go:
Hey music man, just play something cool
We love the sunshine to dance by the pool
Down with the crew known to pump up the bass
We rock the joint at a cool steady pace
Consider the joint rocked.
Find a full gallery of photos from Morcheeba’s Brooklyn Bowl performance posted below.
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