Chasing Grace
The Social, 10th Feb 2014
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Last week Little Portland street’s The Social welcomed Chasing Grace for their month long residency. Seeing this duo for a 3rd time may seem excessive but with illnesses always catching the better of them it’s been hard to fully absorb their talent. Discovering Grace Ackerton and Phil Plested via their collaboration with Naughty boy, opting for round 2 of their 4 show spectacular seemed a promising favourite as it included a DJ set from the man himself as well as performances from Hotel Cabana star Tanika.
Don’t let Monday fool ya was the catchphrase left by Tanika on her Twitter straight after the event and here’s why we think she’s on point.
Bringing her hooker heels and killer dress to the stage Tanika performed a short but by no means forgettable set. The crowd instantly warmed to her confident R&B Soul that filled the room during her opener Bad 4 U.
Love gets the better of us all at some point in our lives but it’s heartbreak many artists find themselves touching on when it comes to song-writing. Conveying sorrow for an ex Tanika gave a heartfelt performance of Get Gone before unleashing her anger and frustration with a full blown swearing session during Fucking With My Heart. Although sung with conviction Fucking With My Heart was a little too brash and would have better left out of the set in favour of her new track Finally Found It. Ending on Freedom, a track written about her sister’s declaration of love of women had the crowd eating out the palm of her hand for touching on what many see as a delicate issue.
Being headliners and host didn’t seem to work as Chasing Grace took to the stage with little fuss. However as soon as Grace’s vocals on So Strong kicked in their low key entrance was quickly brushed aside and everyone’s eyes were locked on them. Clear from the off Grace & Phil’s vocals do gel well together but there’s no shying away that it’s Ackerton’s deep London accent that carries the band.
Creating variety for those who had come last week they explained they would switch the cover of their set, this week they performed a stunning version of Drake ft Rihanna Take Care. Picking a song that had already two parts was a clever move and subsequently an impressive choice.
Lifting the tempo definite crowd pleasers were Another Type of Love and Runaway. A call and response tactic for Runaway worked marvellously as the crowd clapped along to the sound of the beat similar to Mumford & Sons. Atmosphere at its peak Grace and Co jumped around the stage but cheekily one band member took things a little too far when he asked the crowd to take pictures for his Facebook!
Previously on tour with British songstress Ellie Goulding they concluded their set with a peculiar cover of her latest single Goodness Gracious. Cover songs are all about having fun with a track that is not your own but unfortunately the vibe that shines through in Ellie’s version was lost in translation. This dampened what had previously been a jolly affair and given the success of Runaway would make for better encore for the future shows.
Don’t let Monday fool ya… Get down to The Social this Monday to see Chasing Grace and some more of her talented friends for round 3!
Dianna Woolfenden 