Review: Tirzah

The Queen’s Hall as a music venue is a special location, regardless of the genre that is being performed. It may be associated more with classical and traditional music but tonight proves that the rich amalgamation of grime, garage and R&B belongs just as equally in the space. 

A cacophony of noise welcomes singer-songwriter Tirzah Mastin to the quiet Queen’s Hall stage, minimalist beats and loops building an atmosphere that feels intimate and yet also uneasy. Accompanied by multi-instrumentalist and DJ Coby Sey, the drum machine loops and dark, dissonant sounds amplify the cavernous tones of Tirzah’s 2023 record trip9love…???, tracks like album opener ‘F22’ and ‘Promises’ lending a feeling of distance with their trickling, repetitive piano melodies. The album itself was written and produced to seem like one long track and tonight’s set echoes this, the pace consistent although occasionally threatening to turn monotonous. 

Bathed in white light, Tirzah appears as a shadow-like figure, at times angelic against the darkness of the expansive stage. Towards the end of the set, the lighting is reminiscent of the beams coming out of a film projector, as if Tirzah and Sey are scoring an otherworldly film. It adds to the overall cinematic quality of Tirzah’s sound, where hazy and white-noise soaked soundscapes reign supreme, lifting the elegant and mournful tones of her vocals.