Freya Ridings at Omeara, London, review: Poignant performance well beyond her years

Emerging new artist showcased her ability to keep an audience transfixed as if she were telling a story

The singer delivers each song and lyric impeccably and with heart (Michael Holdyk)

Freya Ridings delivered a poignant performance at London’s Omeara that was well beyond her 23 years of age.

The singer’s ambient and, at times, ethereal sound, places her somewhere in between London Grammar’s Hannah Reid and Florence Welch in terms of range and vocal power.

Brimming with soul, that voice played quite the juxtaposition to her much softer – almost nervous – speaking voice, as she got comfortable with her surroundings, delivering a set which combined her own original material which yo-yoed between the sombre and the upbeat: and her own unique covers of tracks by artists including Hozier and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

The London native’s family were also in attendance, Ridings dedicated “You Mean The World To Me” as a heartfelt ode to her mother, and subsequently her father and brother by proxy, to a chorus of laughter at what was ultimately a homecoming of sorts. The feel-good atmosphere clearly spurred Ridings on at the sold-out show: she grew in confidence as the night progressed.

Backed by her band and playing the keyboard, Ridings showcased her ability to keep an audience transfixed as if she were telling a story. Each song and every lyric was delivered impeccably and with heart, demonstrating there was real angst and emotion entwined within those words, nowhere more evident than with her encore performance of her latest single, the stunning “Lost Without You”.