Lenka (Photo: Sony Music Singapore)

REVIEW: FELINA TAN

It’s been two years since her debut album The Show and Lenka is back with a greater zing of indie-pop, backed with a hearty dose of electronic beats. In town recently to promote her sophomore album entitled Two, the 33-year-old Australian singer-songwriter also gave a private showcase in the intimate setting of TAB at Orchard Hotel on a Saturday evening to a sizeable crowd ranging from the likes of teenage girls to the older and more sophisticated.

The doe-eyed pop-meister, clad in a black dress dotted with silver glitter and a gold ribbon headband, came on stage with her band (guitarist/keyboardist John Graney and keyboardist/trumpeter Danny Levin) upon the fans’ roaring applause and kicked off the show with the dance floor-friendly “Two” and “Roll With The Punches.” Undoubtedly, Lenka is consummate performer and it is not just due to her good looks. Her playful wit and humor came across during the one-hour showcase as she bantered about being a Singaporean for the night, from greeting the crowd with “Ni Hao” (Mandarin for “How Are You”) to proudly proclaiming she learnt a new word and is able to use it in the right context – “Shiok”.

Lenka (Photo: Sony Music Singapore)

Crowd interaction aside, the former vocalist for indie band Decoder Ring also slowed things down a little as she serenaded the crowd with the poignant and melancholic “Knock Knock” and “Don’t Let Me Fall.”The songs served as a great prologue to “Heart Skips A Beat”, her current hit which was recently made into a stop-motion animation video with a medical pop theme. The clever use of synthesizers in the song is undeniably a great portrayal of Lenka’s distinct new sound: less bubblegum, more upbeat and dance-y.

But the true winner of the night was definitely the crowd. Not only did they clap and dance along to almost every song, their roars of “We want more!” and “Encore!” ripped through the bar, which led to Lenka treating them to two of her widely famous songs “Trouble Is A Friend” and “The Show” after the supposedly set closer, “Everything’s Okay.”

Lenka (Photo: Sony Music Singapore)

Needless to say, the audience could be heard singing along to every line to “The Show.” Lenka even teased the crowd by saying “This feels like a choir!” and pretended to be a conductor in an orchestra ensemble, waving her invisible conductor’s wand to harmonize everyone. Before leaving the stage, Lenka gave her sweetest parting shot of the night – what made her heart skipped a beat was the people of Singapore.