| 11 August 2009
City Edinburgh, 1a Market Street
7-11 August, 20:00
Sexy, hip and funny, Rachael Sage is a New Yorker through and through. Her show at City Nightclub was lively and captivating bringing together her jazzy, pop tinged voice with a piano, a stand up bassist and a drummer. The sound was polished and professional and miles away from amateur hour.
This fringe show is highly interactive with Rachael even going into the audience several times, giving away scarves and dancing in the aisles during her break from piano. Throughout her set, she lovingly mocks busking, other fringe performers and even her Jewish mother from North Carolina. Her stage presence is confident and poised and her musical style is unique compared with the boring, sterile female singers in the charts today.
Aside from the humour, Rachael’s songs did enter serious territory – and her song ‘Four questions’ about Passover incorporated harmonies and gentle piano chords that had the audience hanging on every note. She has been compared with Elton John and Kate Bush, which is apparent in her piano and vocal style, but one thing Rachael has that the others lack is oodles of sex appeal.
The only flaw is the length as the show is 90 mins. I could have done without the opening act, Seth Glier. His piano playing and slow rock songs reminded me of an X-Factor finalist, great voice but ultimately forgettable. He did have quite an eccentric and nerdy charm to him that assures potential – but for now, his music sounds like Counting Crows covers and lacks originality.
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