The Toff in Town on Thursday night saw a mini showcase of three bands full of high energy, stage presence and strong impact.
None more so than the headliner, Kira Puru and the Bruise, a band quickly gaining momentum, interest, and respect from crowds for their solid live shows and incredible set lists.
The night started out with The Pretty Littles, who in the past few months have been putting on wild shows with tonight’s high energy effort being no exception. Money For Rope was up next with two drummers, lots of harmonies, and a true rock n roll presence.
After a year of garnering a solid reputation for their live show that stays with you, and songs you can’t stop thinking about, Kira Puru And The Bruise are back on the road to showcase new singles. As always, Puru’s voice demonstrated why she is often compared to many strong, female vocalists including the likes Ella Fitzgerald and Amy Winehouse.
Watching Puru and her band is like seeing Etta James taking members of Portishead, Dirty Three, and Queens Of The Stone Age to create a genre spanning, impact heavy, supergroup.
Geordie Malone, Chas Jagger and Jamieson Shaw make up The Bruise, and these guys have their own presence on stage alongside Puru – creating the sexy, gritty and distorted base for which her trademark vocals can soar.
Every purr, wail, and howl delights, and you can’t help believe every word her lyrics hold (particularly terrifying in ‘Liar’, a heavy torrent of phrasing and noise you would never want to be on the receiving end of).
Fantastic crowd interaction added yet another level to this show and with a drink in Puru’s right hand, you’d find her crowd wrapped around a little finger on her left.
It was a personalised experience with songs dedicated to punters (“we’re looking at you, Jess”) and one guy who audibly reviewed a new track yelling out “Yeah, that was good…” much to the band’s delight.
How the four manage to deliver each track with such force and passion while never waning on authenticity is testament to not only their musical ability, which impresses, but their desire to make music as much as their mark. When you thought the cool factor couldn’t get any bigger, Puru disclosed the band’s personal hatred of contrived encores.
So instead of awkwardly loitering backstage before returning to impress again, they showcased an unrehearsed, brilliant rendition of Kylie Minogue’s ‘Confide In Me’.
It’s hard to put Kira Puru And The Bruise in any basket, except to highlight their exceptional talent, charming on stage presence and killer songs. Puru put it better than anyone saying, “I know it’s not cool for bands to be honest and genuine, but I’m genuinely happy you’re here.”
Genuine is exactly how to describe them and what sets them apart is the feeling you’re seeing a band who will not only be a force of the Australian music industry, but eventually an icon of it.
