In our preview to Long Road we had mentioned that Gina Larner had used at laptop at times to supplement her sound when playing solo, and while it was again intermittently noticeable at times providing occasional keyboard support, the star of the show apart from Gina herself of course was her kick ass band. Hannah Feenstra whose thumping back beat at times would turn her into a blur of hair, so fast was her head shaking, while Chloe Peacock on bass and backing vocals provided a throbbing sound that made your heart palpitate at times. On guitar with an almost Edge like presence was Frankie South who’s magnificent line of riffs was only matched at times by her equally impressive rock guitar posing and stylish shades.
It was Frankie would kick things off with a guitar riff, with bass and drums then kicking in along with Gina and suddenly we were into "Let Me See What I Can Do" with Gina a veritable whirl of hand gestures, in her outfit of multiple tassels hanging down. With it's high pitched "Whoo hoo" backing vocals and celebratory
"I know you're coming my way" chorus, this was well and truly a "Hello I'm here" announcement.
Gina would don her own acoustic guitar for "Ask Me" which combined Gina's imperious almost operatic vocals with Frankie's guitar lines. Gina would hold her guitar in the air to signal the end of song that wold occasionally go quiet before being resuscitated back into life with Hannah's powerful back beat.
For "For Your Sake", Gina's vocals would soar on big extended notes as she would add to the title with the optimistic words "Hope he's the one".
The title track of Gina's debut album "Something Good" would see a throng of waving hands initiated by Chloe, on this slower paced tune that would develop into something of an anthem with a trio of vocals singing "They said I was waiting on something"
Things would then take a more heavier rocky turn with a cover of "Let There Be Cowgirls", where Chloe's bass would all but cause the speakers to shake. Gina would this time bring things to a close with a mere twirl of her hand
"Whiskey" would see Frankie at times send powerful riffs reverberating through the sound, it would also see Gina deliver her most concentrated vocal. From there it was straight into the soft acoustic intro to "Daydream" which would see Gina move to a more sassy style of delivery.
For "Say What You Want" her 2024 single Gina would supply multitudes of expressions and would also unwrap the microphone from it's stand allowing her freedom to roam the stage, and have a face off with Frankie on guitar. It would all end with a huge smile as Gina revealed it was only the second time that this had been played live.
Her other single of 2024 "Sin" would see Gina continue singing holding the mic in her hand, dancing so much that her ear piece fell out and would end with her letting out a big puff of air. The perils of her outfit getting caught in her boots would necessitate a quick change of footwear while the band played a little jazz improvisation.
There was time for a bit of Swedish country with a version of Abba's "Does Your Mother Know?" given a Nashville treatment, which worked surprising well, especially in the party atmosphere being created.
A visit to Gina's first single ever came with "Heavy Heart" with it's change to a furious pace on the chorus. There would be some truly fearsome notes hit, air punching and even a little kick in the air on this absolute joyous burst of energy.
Gina would once more display her pure pop credentials with another of her singles "One Way Or Another" which again see her prowl the stage before closing out on the song that #TEAMw21 would find themselves repeatedly humming throughout the weekend "I Think I Love You", the anthemic ear worm that it is. It would see Gina go back to back with bassist Chloe on this final bit of stage craft.
It brought to an end an enthralling set - if you were not there the chance to see Gina tour England in November - dates are included below - an entertaining time is all but guaranteed.
