Martha Wainwright

+ Lazenby

The Hospital Club, London - 23 Jun 2008

by Dan Worth

Angst-folk at its best

"In a flash she turns the room on its head with the strum of a minor chord and a melancholic lyric. She is clearly in her element and it’s a set without gimmicks or PR stunts: just an engaging singer, a guitar, and songwriting at its finest."

On June 23 Radio 1 ran the story of Amy Winehouse having lung disease ahead of the news that the opposition in Zimbabwe were refusing to contest the election. Even for Radio 1, something about that just isn’t right.

The monthly Q The Music Club feels like the perfect antidote to this depressing news agenda, bringing two bewitching females to the stage who rely solely on their talent and charisma to entertain an enraptured audience.

Before the headline act of Maratha Wainwright we are treated the sounds, and sights, of Lazenby. The mix of jazzy blues is the ideal scene setter and in lead singer Sarah Lazenby they have a truly fantastic frontwoman. Her mix of stage presence and mischief – singing through a loudhailer, wandering into the crowd and stroking the guitarist’s face – is a joy to watch. Her sultry jazz club voice and undeniable beauty makes for an intoxicating combination, almost burlesque with its sexual teasing.

She’s accompanied by a stripped down version of the band, a double bassist and guitarist, and the trio play a set of four songs that will probably receive a fair few more plays on their MySpace page after the gig. A name to remember.

So on to the main event. Martha Wainwright is part of a family that is slowly conquering music, one decade and genre at a time, and as she walks on stage to rapturous applause she is clearly in her element. Set against the cool turquoise mood lighting she chats with the audience, mocks herself for introducing her own songs – “God I sound like I’m giving a lecture” – and flirts with her husband when he joins her on stage to play piano on a few songs, notably on French number ‘Dis Quand Reviendras Tu’.

Predominantly playing songs from her recent album ‘I Know You’re Married But I’ve Got Feelings Too’ (“A bit menstrual I know” she quips, her husband giving a wry grin to the audience), as well as a couple of tracks from her self-titled debut, it’s a set without gimmicks or PR stunts: just an engaging singer, a guitar, and songwriting at its finest.

She closes with the rousing (and utterly unambiguous) ‘Bloody Motherfucking Asshole’ before leaving the stage to even louder applause then when she walked on. Simple as that. Winehouse and the rest would do well to take note.

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