LIVE REVIEW: KAIIT lights up Mojos with "Miss Shiney" Tour
Mojos was heaving on Monday night as people flocked to close their long weekend with the majestic KAIIT. The sold-out gig was the last of her Miss Shiney tour, taking in Byron Bay, Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Freo.
Your Girl Pho first came to attention in Ukiyos’ 2017 track Calling and his since established herself as a unique talent of the Perth scene. Your Girl Pho - the stage name of Phoebe Gunson makes neo-soul with a hint of trap - there’s a gritty edge to her sound that comes through in her dance moves. She’s all angles and jerky limbs as her presence takes over the stage. The band is tight and unconventional - a drummer and two saxophonists - while Phoebe controls vocal loops and synths from pedals and track pads on the mic. This works so seamlessly that it took me to the end of her set to realise there was no keyboardist on stage. The drum beat on the last track of the set was an epic show of control from Phos’ extremely talented drummer.
Grievous Bodily Calm are an eclectic bunch of musicians who formed in 2016 and have been releasing jazz fusion bangers ever since. Their latest album, Repel, was an RTRFM local feature album in March and is now up for best album at the WAM awards later this month. The five-piece lived up to their reputation for palpable live shows - which may in part be due to the unbridled enthusiasm for their keys player, who accentuated every solo with his own hand-dance session.
On their own, these two Perth bands are enough for a great night out, but KAIIT really took things up a level. She appeared on stage in what is possibly the cutest outfit I have ever seen, rocking a straw hat and high waisted skirt combo that had me wanting to ask where she shopped. In a reflective mood for the last night of her tour, she shared her thoughts with the crowd about the need to take time out to find your own authentic voice as an artist before launching into crowd favourite OG Luv Kush 2. It was such a crowd-pleaser it also became her encore for the evening.
She left the crowd on the kind of high that only comes with witnessing fantastic live music, and pondering the quintessential Perth question: What IS that plant that smells like weed?
