Geneva Jacuzzi is the embodiment of cool and unusual, as was her chosen Liverpool venue for her much anticipated tour with brooding synth pop goddess Riki: The Rough Trade Centre, vinyl and coffee shop by day, booming concert venue by night.
I arrived at the venue at 7:45, and walked the stairs, guided by a droning yet simultaneously uplifting buzz of synth and fluorescent green lights.
“This is really cool”, my friend exclaimed. I agreed.
After grabbing a drink, we headed to the stage, and were greeted with the ethereal performance of Slovakian support act ‘Woman’s Touch’, clad with a shiny blue cape which was worn and harnessed to enhance the self empowerment in her songs. “F*** your expectations” she sang with a hint of bitterness and reverb. She often crouched close to the growing crowd, who cheered intermittently as she strutted around the stage, her cloak floating behind her. At the end of her set, she bowed and thanked the crowd. “I went destitute for this”, she joked as she left the stage, “not to guilt trip you or anything!”
An interlude of synth and goth hits- ‘Depeche Mode’ and ‘A Flock Of Seagulls’ amongst them- blared through the speakers as the crowd dispersed. After a brief trip to some very Lynchian toilets, it was time for Riki.
As soon as a distinct, dingy synth started up, German singer Riki appeared in red leather gloves paired with a slightly devious smile. She played several hits from her self-titled album, including particular standouts like “Bose Lugen” and “Napoleon”, accompanied with impressive and transfixing dance moves and occasional engaging points to the audience. A particular group in the crowd cheered and whooped whenever she came over, which grew into jumps and screeches as she pulled out a Melodica and began to play it. Her entire performance was electrifying, with a pairing of impending bouncy synths reminiscent of German group ‘Rue Oberkampf’ and a monotone chanting of lyrics which would sometimes morph into a warlike and impressively on pitch cry.
I couldn’t hide my excitememt as we veered closer to the promised visual spectacle that was Geneva Jacuzzi. A sudden shushing of the crowd signalled the start of her show, as giant abstract shapes were placed at the rear of the stage. Everyone inched slightly closer as she floated out, costumed back up dancers holding an arm each to support her extravagant costume.
Attempting to describe the detail and obscurity of the costumes does not do them justice. It looked like a gothic crossover between a Kandinsky piece and a scene from Willy Wonka. Instead of standing centre stage, they stepped down and immediately entered the crowd, who circled around her. She began to sing, her voice clear and distinct despite the monochrome triangle which covered her entire face. Gigantic striped sleeves were steered by her dancers, as she approached members of the crowd, who flinched but whose eyes remained transfixed at the spectacle. This immediate non-traditional interaction with the crowd broke whatever barriers remained following the Riki performance, allowing people to really embrace the weirdness; from now on, it was either that or leave.
After shedding her giant arms during “God Maker”, she moved onto the ultimate analog sleaze anthem: “Art is Dangerous”, featuring a polystyrene orb to represent the “art” which she discusses in her lyrics, questioning the futility of criticism and the ways in which art is bought and owned, particularly within her home city Los Angeles: “Who gave you the right to hang it / Hang it on the wall?” She appeared to accuse the crowd, allowing them to question the satirical message whilst pointing her orb in the face of a crowd member.
Geneva and her backup dancers proceeded to disappear behind the abstract shapes placed across the stage, emulating a campy shadow show as they performed “Laps of Luxury” from her latest album, “Triple Fire”; one of my personal favourites. It’s a splendidly sparkly track, completely bedazzled in breathy vocals and an addictive bedroom pop chorus.
A memorable highlight of the night was “Cannibal Babies” from Geneva’s 2016 album “Technophilia”. Despite its somewhat death metal-adjacent title, the song is an incredibly catchy and playful one; perfectly accompanied with black and white beach balls which were thrown into the crowd, which had everyone (including Geneva and the crew) giggling. Whilst I admit it was difficult to focus on whether I was about to be hit in the head by a beach ball and to also listen to the music, it still stands as the most fun I’ve had at a concert so far.
The concert came to a close with ‘Triple Fire’’s final track, “Yo Yo Boy”. Whilst holding a similar otherworldly quality, the song mellowed out the crowd slightly, and allowed them to focus on the impressive feat of Geneva’s head hanging over a gigantic circle, becoming part of the set in her final visual feat. As the song came to a close, Geneva and her backup dancers held hands and theatrically bowed. The crowd slowly came out of their transfixation as Geneva thanked them, allowing us to remember that she is a real person and has not visited from another galaxy.
As she left, she mentioned how this was her first time back in Liverpool since 2011, and how her critics at that time “weren’t weird enough” to digest the performance. Hopefully this review has done her some much deserved justice, and I hope that she returns sometime soon.
Review by: Amelie Griffiths
Images credit: Amelie Griffiths
Follow Amelie on Instagram: ameliemaya_21
