I can’t count how many times I’ve heard “Somebody That I Used to Know” by Gotye on the radio in the past year. And that means that I, along with all mainstream-music listeners, have also been exposed to New Zealand singer-songwriter Kimbra with her sultry slinkiness each time I’ve heard the song, too. In fact, that song was the first time I’d ever heard her.
However, if you know anything about 22-year-old Kimbra, you know that she’s not just a guest artist featured on Gotye’s hit single, but she’s her own unique, sassy musician who’s released her own album, “Vows.” And Kimbra’s bold individuality definitely shined through when she performed Wednesday night at the Metro in Chicago. A festive backdrop with silver glittery spider webs and elaborate pink birds among other bright designs decorated a stage drapery. So, there was plenty to entertain the eye during a drawn-out period of silence between a light show-laden pre-show by psychedelic soul band The Stepkids and Kimbra’s performance.
All of Kimbra’s band members (minus Kimbra) entered through a smokey haze to play a nice, funky intro. And then, seemingly out of nowhere, Kimbra popped in and captured the audience’s attention with a head-bobbing first number, “Limbo,” which received a hands-over-head explosion of clapping from a standing-room-only audience.
All of the attention that I had previously given to the ornate backdrop went straight to Kimbra’s colorful costume. My first impression was that it was a Halloween costume of cheerleader-gone-wrong. It included pink puff pom-pom sleeves, an additional layer of purple-and-green pom-poms (which I’m really glad was not a permanent part of her getup) and a skirt reminiscent of a 1950s poodle skirt, except without the poodle.
Don’t get me wrong — I’m all for loud wardrobe choices, but I thought she took this one a bit too far. You know an outfit is a little overboard when your visual stimulation begins to detract from the music. And, after all, this was a concert and not an up-close-and-personal episode of “Project Runway” featuring Kimbra. Kudos to her for being willing to step outside of the box in terms of her outfit, but she might want to consider stepping a little bit back into the box.
In terms of sound, I thought she did a nice job of balancing the lighter, poppy songs like “Posse,” “Cameo Lover,” and “Good Intent” with the more serious, dissonant pieces like “Two Way Street,” and “Plain Gold Ring.” “Cameo Lover” received perhaps the largest response from the crowd, with many jumping up and down.
“Settle Down” started out nicely with her signature a capella intro, piercing the silence she requested of the crowd. However, the silence was not fully honored as one male voice behind me attempted to harmonize a “ba boom ba” somewhere in there. At least he was on-pitch, and received a few giggles from fellow audience members. I noticed that she missed the beginning words of the song but quickly caught up and managed to pull it off. However, it wasn’t top-notch. Perhaps I was more critical of this song since it’s one of my favorites of hers.
Kimbra’s outfit started to grow on me once she shed the extra layer of pom-poms and later her flouncy skirt in favor of an aqua-green one that reminded me of mounds of clumped sod. It may sound bizarre, but it was actually less imposing than the previous top skirt. Her red tambourine was a nice additional touch.
She segued into the song “Old Flame” after giving a nice shout out to The Stepkids, both of which were tastefully and sentimentally done. She also mentioned working with Mark Foster from Foster the People and gave a performance of the song “Call Me” after the whooping and hollering of the crowd brought her back to the stage for an encore. And, she brought The Stepkids out to join, which made for a cheery, camaraderie-filled ending.
