Gig review: Bootcases and Banter

cheers from the girls
Cheers to a great night on the Girls’ Night In tour

It was standing room only on Sunday evening as Kezia Gill, Jade Helliwell, Jess Thristan and Demi Marriner kicked off their Girls’ Night In tour at The Camden Club in London. Alison Dewar writes:

As the girls strutted their way on stage to Shania Twain’s ‘Man! I Feel Like A Woman!’, you just knew it was going to be a good night.

Billed as an intimate writers’ round from some of the UK’s best singer songwriters – who also happen to be four best friends – the gig delivered exactly what it said on the box.

Conceived (as it were) in a hot tub during a weekend break in January 2022, at times it felt as if the audience was literally eavesdropping on a girls’ party night.

friendship on the road
Boots, banter and amazing songs…

Plenty of chat (mainly Demi and Jade of course) and insights into everything from curries on tour to where to buy the best boots – can it really be true that Kezia packed just one pair, while the aforementioned girls packed four pairs each? To be fair, they were all amazing boots…even if they did need their own ‘bootcases’.

I digress, no matter how good the banter, it was the music and the stories behind the songs that we had come to hear, and they didn’t disappoint.

They got the party started with Dolly Parton’s 9 To 5 before Kezia (self-confessed ‘mother’ of the group) kicked off with House of Cards from her 2017 self-titled album Kezia – the perfect start to an evening which went seamlessly from powerhouse ballads to heartbreakers where you could hear a pin drop.

Far too many songs to mention them all but there were plenty of standout moments, including Stay from Demi’s debut album The Things We Didn’t Say, due out in July; together with One Way Conversation, the song she co-wrote with Tom West.

The co-write round served to remind us just how close the four of them are, writing regularly with each other (including on good old faithful zoom during the pandemic) and hearing the stories behind some of those songs was very touching.

The Kezia and Jade collaboration Our Song, about how the power of music reminds you of someone, nearly brought the house down – both for the words and the strength of their beautifully blended voices. Cue a huge round of applause.

Jade also co-wrote Jess’s song Home, written at a time when Jess was living in London during the pandemic and missing her home in Yorkshire, before Jade treated us to How Long Did You Know, receiving some of the biggest cheers of the night.

Hearing Kezia’s just-released single Whiskey Over Ice sung live was a real treat, before Jess turned the volume down with Things We Remember, a very special song about those we have lost.

The ‘unreleased’ round also gave us a sneak preview of some of the new music each of these talented musicians has coming along the tracks – watch this space, the songs are amazing.

All in all, a great gig which gave each of the artists their time to shine in their own right while also showcasing their collaborations with both each other and fellow writers.

Time is tight – after Glasgow tonight (Feb 21), the girls are in Manchester on 22nd, Newcastle on 23rd and Leeds on 26th.

With a few tickets left for Newcastle, we suggest you beg, steal or borrow (not really, but you know what we mean) to try and get your hands on a ticket to the hottest gig in town – and we don’t mean that hot tub! https://www.ticketweb.uk

Girls Night In final dates

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