Demi Marriner will be packing more venues as a headliner soon. Brilliant.
Demi Marriner, with support Sean Duggan of Steady Habits
at Arlington Arts, Snelsmore
on Friday, May 30
Review and pictures by BRIAN HARRINGTON
SEAN Duggan gave the Arlington audience a 30-minute solo set of acoustic Americana. Originally from Connecticut, he is now based in Oxford and his self-penned songs explore modern issues and feelings including his coming-out as a gay man. Tracks included Stay, Edge of Changing and new single Deviate, released that day.
Demi Marriner would also be considered as Americana but she and her band are most definitely on the rockier end of that genre, however she also included what she described as a “country ditty”.
Apart from her own projects, Demi is also a member of Elles Bailey’s band.
The current tour is promoting her new album, due for release in September, as well as another album, due out some time thereafter. Demi is releasing singles from her next album one at a time but the setlist included virtually the whole thing.
Opening with the excellent Sound The Alarm, Demi instantly made a connection with the near-capacity audience and her witty, occasionally self-effacing, banter strengthened that bond.
Among the new, as yet unreleased tracks, that particularly impressed me were Repeat Refrain and Seize The Day, while Think of Me, a track not scheduled to be included in either of her forthcoming albums was wonderful.
Mixing band tracks with a couple in which Demi performed solo and one in which the band all joined her around a single microphone, this was a superb show demonstrating that she is a rising musical force and that her band are seriously accomplished.
One Way Conversation is a plaintiff description of a failing relationship and I loved Stop, Pause, Rewind. The much-demanded, and thoroughly deserved, encore included the solo track Forgiveness before the full band returned to the stage for Good Guy Act.
I’m convinced Demi will be packing more venues as a headliner soon.
Brilliant.
