Gemma Ray, Auckland NZ, 2017

Gemma Ray with support from Gris-De-Lin

2nd May 2017
Golden Dawn, Auckland, New Zealand.

Review by Sarah Kidd. Photography by Mike Thornton.

Winter is now well and truly nipping at the heels and certainly makes leaving the house after the sun has gone down all that little bit harder. But what better to way to warm the soul then with a night of sumptuous music at local music spot Golden Dawn in Ponsonby. On offer tonight is not one but two international acts, the headliner being that of the wonderfully talented Gemma Ray.

But first up on this crisp evening is Gris-De-Lin (aka Lucy Underhill) a wonderfully eclectic act from Dorset in the UK. Gris (for short) is a solo project but encapsulated within that is a woman who is astoundingly multi-talented. She developed a love of music from a very early age and learnt both the piano and saxophone at the same time – she then went on to self-teach herself the guitar and drums. Her name was inspired by the materials contained inside a warehouse next door to where she lives. Her lyrics are thought provoking, her sound unique. There are tones of folk music intertwined with the blues and a large dash of electronica dressing to top it all off. Her debut EP ‘The Kick’ from which she plays tracks tonight is well worth adding to the music collection if not for the song ‘Your Ghost’ alone.

After a short break and some rearrangement of positions and equipment on the intimate stage, the striking Gemma Ray steps up to the microphone. Dressed in a high collar short blue dress, and tan cowboy style boots, her signature (‘ONEARM’) guitar is suspended over her shoulder. And looking around the room there are at least a dozen people coveting said guitar, myself included. Ray regards us all with a steady gaze and begins to sing her opening track ‘Come Caldera’, her voice clear and yet with a delightful ‘husky’ quality to it. She uses her guitar to not only play but create interesting soundscapes; punctuating her songs with twangs and flourishes that reverberate around the room. As she turns slightly you notice a large wood handled carving knife has been wedged under the back end of the bridge of the guitar. It delightfully adds to the appeal of the woman before you, and certainly makes her even more goth/noir then she already appeared.

Based in Berlin but born in Essex, Ray is not only a singer/songwriter but a film composer and producer. Her debut album in 2008 entitled ‘The Leader’ quickly brought her attention and was followed up just two years later by the outstanding ‘Lights Out Zoltar!’ which not only won her an independent music award but accolades from Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page himself.

Ray is supported tonight by Andy Zammit on drums and Lucy Underhill (Gris-De-Lin performing double duties) on keyboards. The combination of the three creating a wonderful wall of sound that is both overpowering and embracing simultaneously. Second track of the night ‘There must be more than this’ is a glorious track with a swaggering western vibe to it. It builds upon itself, the subtle piano laced into the chorus. There is not a single audience member who is not at this point lost in the midst of this gorgeous song. Ray’s music has been described as many things, including ‘atmospheric’, ‘gothic-folk’ and even ‘pop-noir’ and to be fair her songs capture all of the above and more. Her set tonight is comprised of almost all of the tracks off her new album ‘The Exodus Suite’ released last year. The album was recorded in seven days at Candy Bomber Studios and is 52 minutes of superb listening material.

As Ray shifts slightly on stage and nearly stumbles she laughs and looks at the audience “Hmm have got to that clumsy bit of touring, the playing bit is fine, the drinking bit is fine (as if to demonstrate she takes a sip from her glass) just the co-ordination that is suffering” she laughs, her sassy self-deprecating making her even more endearing to the audience. It is not often that an artist’s voice can be described as being full of flavour, but when it comes to Ray it feels completely natural to say so. From her quiet whisperings to her full-bodied cries each song elicits a different taste. Even her speaking voice, with that English accent so many kiwi’s love has its own quality. “This is a simple song about the fact that we are all from all over the place” Ray announces before moving into ‘We are all wandering’ – a soaring song that is peppered with Celtic flourishes.

Towards the end of the set Ray takes a moment to thank the people that made it possible for her to come down to New Zealand and informs us that she has a couple more songs unless “something crazy happens, not sure of the etiquette round here” the audience laughing as she grins cheekily at them. “So have got a few more songs…about the end of the world” the audience laughs again, picking up on Ray’s dark humour as she begins to play ‘Hail Animal’. Finishing her set with ‘Caldera, Caldera!’ which Ray describes as “an experiment in sound”, the audience energetically applauds as Ray bids us all thank you and goodnight.

There is no encore – even though all of us would have been quite happy to hear more – just the echoes to cocoon us as we venture out into the cold night air.

Gris-De-Lin:

Gemma Ray:

Were you there at Golden Dawn for this amazing night of musical brilliance? Or have you seen Gemma Ray live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!