HAERTS and Mikky Ekko
The Crocodile, Seattle, WA
12.13.14
On a Saturday night in one of Seattle’s classic venues, to a 21 and over, chilled out crowd, HAERTS took to the stage of The Crocodile to open the night, co-headlining with Mikky Ekko. Though the combination of these two acts at first seemed a bit surprising, it went down as smooth as silk. HAERTS’s particular brand of quasi-indie synth-pop is one that is hard to argue with, and what this band may lack in identifiable personality, it makes up for with its pure appreciation of pop. Dressed in all black, straight out of a fashion editorial, lead singer Nini Fabi comes off as comfortable yet reticent. And, without much in the way of banter, the band careened through a set list that sounded just as clean as hearing them on your stereo. The crowd danced when appropriate, and generally seemed smitten with the stylized vibe HAERTS brought to the night.
The night’s second act brought us the intensely otherworldly, yet somehow fragile and approachable vocal styles of one Mikky Ekko. Fueled by a few tequila shots for his first Seattle show, Ekko definitely had the ladies swooning. With influences of gospel, rock, and hip-hop, there’s no doubt Mikky Ekko can sing. And, backed by a full touring band, his voice sounded real and raw, giving a grounding effect to what might otherwise fit cleanly into an electro-pop bucket. Noting that he rarely plays it live, Ekko graced the evening’s crowd with a solo performance of the track “Stay,” and they unsurprisingly sang right along. His first full-length is set to release in January.
Review and photos by Stephanie Dore
HAERTS
Mikky Ekko
