Jacob Collier, Auckland NZ, 2019

Jacob Collier

2nd September 2019
Powerstation, Auckland, New Zealand.

Review by Mike Beck. Photography by Chris Zwaagdyk.

Jacob Collier is a musician of such broad versatility, that if he were able to be cloned, he could take care of every seat in an entire orchestra. A wonderkid who has mastered a number of instruments to almost virtuoso level, not only does he play each as if they were his chosen axe (the piano being his identified strength), he also displays an immense knowledge and understanding of music theory. Just take a look at his TED Talk and visit to MIT on YouTube for a taster of this.

Collier is in the middle of working on a fifty strong collection of songs, recorded over a one-year period and spread over four volumes under the title Djesse, each one embracing a different musical concept. With Vol. 2 having recently seen the light of day in July, Collier arrived in New Zealand last night for his much anticipated first ever visit.

The Powerstation is pretty full for a Monday night, and much like the Snarky Puppy gig here a few months back, the room is musician heavy. It makes sense, as at twenty-five years of age, Collier is a veritable musical prodigy. Without a support act to warmup the crowd, Collier arrived onstage with his three-piece band like a kid in a candy store. He was all over the place, commencing a musical chairs style performance, his energy and physical freedom immediately becoming evident.

With the stage inhabited by a collection of lighting stands that resembled a neon forest, Collier opened up with a rollicking version of ‘With the Love in My Heart’, fittingly from Djesse Vol. 1. The title track from the same record was to follow, highlighting Collier’s concept for the album and the ethos as a composer that he is most associated with; classical.

His signature composition ‘Hideaway’, from his debut album In My Room released back in 2016, was admirably represented here by Collier and his rather vocally able band given that the studio version is so layered. Another off In My Room, ‘Don’t You Know’, allowed Collier to use the stage as his playground. If he’s not on keys, he’s running about, darting between a hybrid percussion drumkit, and whatever else he can lay his hands on.

‘Feel’, the first track to be played from his latest Djesse Vol. 2, pulled things back somewhat, the low on bpm’s ballad allowing female Portuguese multi-instrumentalist Maro to take the vocal frontline. Collier used the opportunity to embellish the space with some incidental experimentation, later mentioning that the musical concept for Vol. 2 is loosely based on the folk genre.

When he dived into a super-quirky and funky cover of ‘Close to You’, you really felt that while being a musical genius, Collier can also be The Wiggles for intellectual adults. He’s having so much fun when he performs, that the energizer bunny would be proud of him. When Collier alternated between funky bass and expressive vocoder, it provided one of the night’s most musically entertaining moments.

Maro again got a solo spot for ‘Mariana’, which she wrote, accompanying herself on acoustic guitar. When Collier then joined in on acoustic gat also, the tune merged into ‘Hajanga’; its robust Latin sections being where the excellent rhythm section of bassist Robin Mullarkey and drummer Christian Euman got to cut loose.

Alone onstage under a spotlight, Collier gave an intimate performance of ‘Best Part’, a Daniel Caesar composition. Amidst the classical chop burn, Collier led a creative call and response, sectioning the audience and directing them as if conducting an orchestra. He was to do this several times throughout the evening, his flickering fingers seeming to be a trademark manoeuvre.

A duel drum solo by Euman and Collier ushered in a jazzed-up version of ‘Fascinating Rhythm’, Collier showing great flow to move from percussion into a ripping jazz piano solo. While he has great discipline in his application, playing with both exceptional skill and accuracy much like a classical musician, there’s something in the physical freedom and fast switches that sets apart Collier from the rest.

The finale, a joyous version of Lionel Richie’s ‘All Night Long (All Night)’ allowed the band to really turn the show into a party. More room segregating sing-along’s concluded Colliers set, as he then made offerings of thanks to not only his band, but also individually naming his sound, stage and lighting managers.

Buoyed on by an appreciative and vocally proficient crowd, Collier and band returned for a triple song encore. Requesting the audience to take a seat on the floor, Collier and his team also sat, grouping centre stage-front in order to acoustically deliver a Brian Wilson classic. If one is looking for an explanation as to why Collier is so musically advanced and mature for his age ‘In My Room’ explains it. Bathed in red light, there was a sense that as the sun sets on one fading musical genius, another one rises in Collier.

The covers may have been coming out late, but they were more than worth the wait as a gorgeous version of The Beatles ‘Blackbird’ really exemplified Collier’s vocal ability. His voice, although somewhat nondescript, has great freedom to explore many places note-wise. Collier once again stretching out the audience participation with his last number ‘It Don’t Matter’, all the while giving the sense that he was lightly educating us in his philosophy to interact and have fun with the music.

This was a performance of the utmost technical musical prowess, with Collier’s boyish abandon and acknowledgement of his audience making his brand of musical smorgasbord widely accessible. His band was equally impressive, and one gets the feeling that these young musicians, as well as many others who have had the pleasure of working with Collier, are grateful for the positive hangs, as well as the opportunity to learn from an extremely dedicated and focused composer. Those checking Collier’s upcoming releases will no doubt be keen to grab Djesse Vol. 3 with its funk thematic, when it arrives. Vol. 4 however – as Collier explained – is to be kept a mystery. For now.

Were you there at the Powerstation to witness this magnificent musician’s musician? Or have you seen Jacob Collier perform live somewhere else? Tell us about it in the comments below!

Setlist:

1. With The Love In My Heart
2. Djesse
3. Hideaway
4. Don’t You Know
5. Feel
6. Close To You
7. Mariana
8. Hajanga
9. Best Part
10. Fascinating Rhythm
11. All Night Long (All Night) [Lionel Richie cover]
12. In My Room [Brian Wilson cover] [encore]
13. Blackbird [The Beatles cover] [encore]
14. It Don’t Matter [encore]

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