24-year-old Londoner Benjamin Garratt, aka Fryars, has been developing a bit of a side line as co-writer to the stars, after appearing alongside Lily Allen on tracks for her latest album and true to form he appears on stage with tonight’s headliner to deliver ‘Cold’, a standout from Rae Morris’ debut record Unguarded.
His own ‘Cool Like Me’ is a wicked slice of electro-pop with vocals reminiscent of Miike Snow’s Andrew Wyatt, though delivering it sat behind a keyboard robs his set of some of its dynamism.
Appearing as part of Tut’s 25th birthday celebrations, Rae Morris is obviously aware of the venue’s storied history, thanking the audience profusely for their time and applause.
Her breakout track ‘Closer’ casts her as a day-glo Florence Welch, while in the past she’s played foil to Jack Steadman in Bombay Bicycle Club.
At heart though, her songs draw on the appealing and unforced eccentricity of Bjork or Kate Bush.
A clock ticks down as she enters the small stage and launches into a set featuring the majority of her debut album.
There’s touches of Tori Amos in the solo ballads and Marina & the Diamonds in the pop melodies, leavened by appealing vocal quirks and tics, and what a voice it is; her transformation from side women into star is complete, with a performance that manages to be both technically impressive and naturally charming.
Occasionally her song writing is less inspiring, inching into Ellie Goulding, bland territory on the more overtly dance-orientated tracks, like her Clean Bandit collaboration ‘Up Again’, but for each of these broadsides there is a moment of quirky authenticity, like early EP track ‘Grow’, which features a whistled coda.
‘Under the Shadows’ is the finest track of the evening, casting a neon gaze over Kate Bush’s ‘Running Up That Hill’.
Cheered back onstage for a two song encore, Morris seems genuinely overwhelmed by the response to her and her bands performance and, as anticipated, ‘Closer’ draws the show to a finish.
It’s not quite the show you would expect a seasoned pro to deliver, but Morris is a charming presence and her BBC Sound of 2015 nomination seems richly justified.
Words: Max Sefton
Photos: Tim J Gray
