Clara Luciani’s cool Corsican groove was a glamorous reprieve from the Brisbane heat, as the Powerhouse hosts another sultry French artist for this year’s 'So Frenchy So Chic'.
Clara’s voice is like a warm blanket, or melted chocolate: it’s soothing and gentle and when she hits the (very impressive) low notes, you can almost feel it vibrating in your bones. She combines elements of classic rock, with electronic beats and an almost '70s funk.
Her music is at the same time very danceable, and excellent background music to a highly fashionable party. The main take-home from an evening with Clara and her band is that she’s cool.
The vibe of the pieces is fairly similar, so with the exception of an acoustic song about being a woman in these strange times, it is difficult to pick a stand out as they blended together somewhat. But this didn’t affect the enjoyment of the set in the slightest, it was all about creating an atmosphere.
While singing, Clara doesn’t crack a smile. Her band mates are all clad entirely in black, with varying degrees of hipster/ rocker hairstyles, and they almost frame her on stage. When she grooved (there is no other word for it) across the stage, feet slightly turned in, arms unmoving and a stony expression, the audience was transported.
She is almost like a cross between Sarah Blasko and the girls in the Robert Palmer video, 'Addicted To Love'.
The spell is broken somewhat when she chats to the audience between songs. She is very, very warm and charming, with a dangerous sense of humour.
To get the audience singing, she commented faux-innocently on how good Melbourne and Sydney audiences were, how enthusiastically they got involved in the show – it worked, of course, and the previously hesitant sing-along became slightly deafening.
She joked too about her poor English. An interesting detail from the French press is that one of her pre-fame side hustles was as an English teacher – even though she didn’t speak the language at the time!
This was a wonderful, atmospheric night out. Next time they’re in town, head along to feel the cool French vibes of the 'So Frenchy So Chic' performers, and be transported for an evening.
