Alessia Cara's debut Melbourne show at The Palais

Feature Image of Alessia Cara (courtesy of Universal Music Australia) 

Alessia Cara played the final show down under and first Melbourne/Naarm show on May 10 at the Palais Theatre in St Kilda on her tour, bringing her fourth album Love & Hyperbole to Australian Audiences.

From the teenager putting out her debut single ‘Here’ back in 2016 to the Grammy and Juno Award-winning artist with four studio albums under her belt, Canadian singer-songwriter Alessia Cara keeps reaching new heights of success. Cara has amassed over 18 million monthly listeners while traversing and blending genres in each iteration of her sound to create her own sonic identity as an artist, best described as pop/R&B with jazz and soul infusion.

Love & Hyperbole was released on Valentine’s Day and is comprised of 14 tracks, all showcasing the mature growth of Cara’s songwriting and musicianship in her new era. The album was accompanied by a short film album trailer.

The songs on the album explore an expansive range of themes that see the listener take Cara’s hand and travel the ups, downs and reflective turmoils of the record’s soundscape. From infatuation and love to heartbreak and retrospective moving on, the album invites every listener to relate to at least one track.

The album features witty lyrics such as “I’ve been staying frozen, I’m a broken wristwatch / Taking chances, but I’m only throwing rim-shots” from the first track ‘Go Outside’ and experimental instrumentation that showcases the versatility of Cara’s composition ability and canvases her exceptional vocals. Intricate guitar leads and full-bodied synth breaks allow for breathing room from lyric-heavy tracks.

The Palais Theatre is the largest seated theatre in Australia, and despite its challenging sloped stage, Cara’s high-energy performance was full of movement, dancing, jumping and crowd engagement. The crowd, made up of leather-look black and red/maroon outfits and families, all got involved in call and responses, sing-alongs and dancing, which created a wholesome and exciting energy in the room.

Audience involvement in ‘Somebody Else’, which Cara walked the crowd through, helped to create a sense of intimacy and connection in the room. 

Everyone in the Palais had an unconditional invitation to feel included among everyone else—a testament to Cara’s Know-it-all roots as being outside the popular crowd.

New and original fans alike could find enjoyment in the night. Unsurprisingly, many of the songs from Love & Hyperbole made Cara’s 28-song setlist, but the set also made room for songs from her first studio album, Know It All, a mashup of songs from her 2019 EP, This Summer and a variety of tracks from her second and third albums, The Pains of Growing and In The Meantime.

Cara’s songs and collaborations over the years haven’t shied away from the singer’s experiences with mental health challenges. This willingness to dive right into hard conversations and difficult feelings was complemented by the show’s structure, which made space for big emotions. There were mellow fan-favourites like ‘Best Days’, ‘Out of Love’ and ‘Subside’ woven into the threads of the show alongside high-energy anthems including ‘Go Outside!’, ‘Here’ and ‘Wild Things’. 

The pacing of the show overall also lent itself to breathing room in slower songs filled with raw and stripped-back emotions in ‘Clearly’ and ‘Fire. These songs were opportunities for Cara to demonstrate her effortless vocal runs and ability to recreate her recorded sound while also creatively diverging with ad-lib riffs.

Cara also performed a snippet from ‘How Far I’ll Go’, most notably associated with Disney’s 2016 animated film, Moana, which Cara mentioned had been retired from live performances as a rare treat. Alongside this special appearance, Melbourne’s “secret song” was one of the first songs from In The Meantime, ‘Box in the Ocean’. Cara cited its tropical sound as being a main contributor to this decision.

The Australian leg of the tour also saw Sydney artist Charli Lucas support Cara. 

Charli Lucas, known for songs including ‘Bless the Internet’ and ‘Anthem for Loners’, brought the vibes up with acoustic and pared-back renditions of her discography, including unreleased music. Charli Lucas’ involvement in the show is also a step in the right direction in terms of Michael’s Rule and getting local artists up on the stage for international artists touring in Australia.

Alessia Cara’s first Melbourne/Naarm show was everything fans could have hoped for and cements her success on Australian shores a decade after she first performed down under.

 

Love & Hyperbole is available to stream on all music platforms now! For more information check out Alessia Cara's official website here.

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