Roisin Murphy

The dark sweaty arch of Concorde 2 was the perfect setting to introduce Roisin Murphy’s clubland inspired latest album, ‘Hairless Toys’. Her disembodied voice emerged from backstage before she did, intoning the staccato verses of Royal T, a house jazz track from 2010, then there she is, Moloko’s former frontwoman, a gamine art school queen, dressed in Eighties’ inspired shimmering gold jumpsuit, one eye blacked out, and wearing an antler hat, one of many art-inspired outfits throughout the gig, including a kimono seemingly made out of a duvet. Honest guv. It somehow worked. This album returns Murphy deep into clubland, delivering a soundtrack to nights you hope will never end, the highlight of which was a ten minute woozathon on the deep house track ‘Jealously’. Moloko fans weren’t left wanting more as she served up Familiar Feeling and Pure Pleasure Seeker in a jazz infused arrangement, before scooping the crowd up in a giddy dose of Italian melodrama with Non Credere from her Italian language EP.

Concorde2, 13 May 2015
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Alison Swann