Sunday night was sleepy, so Gianna Lauren gave us a stormy dream of a performance. The Halifax artist was backed up by Mauno who, besides Weaves and Susie Asado, were really the talk of Lawnya Vawnya after playing pop-up shows beyond their stellar scheduled appearances.
Lauren is a relatively even-tempered and hypnotic performer. She has a lovely, full voice and a good instinct for adventurous phrasing. At The Ship, she led her songs down strange and unexpected paths. Often things felt rubbery; the noir-pop arrangements would bend but eventually come back around to their intended shape.
If Lauren conjured an emotionally focused Julie Doiron at times, then Mauno were her Wooden Stars. Their post-punk/rock angles and textures made the whole production feel big and uncontainable at times — a sonic force that makes Lauren such a compelling musical figure.
Lauren is a relatively even-tempered and hypnotic performer. She has a lovely, full voice and a good instinct for adventurous phrasing. At The Ship, she led her songs down strange and unexpected paths. Often things felt rubbery; the noir-pop arrangements would bend but eventually come back around to their intended shape.
If Lauren conjured an emotionally focused Julie Doiron at times, then Mauno were her Wooden Stars. Their post-punk/rock angles and textures made the whole production feel big and uncontainable at times — a sonic force that makes Lauren such a compelling musical figure.