Jo Hamilton by Joanna Kwa
Jo Hamilton: it’s not a name that will instantaneously ring much bells in people. It painfully showed, with the scarcity of audience in the capacity of the Esplanade Recital Studio. That, without the consideration of the media coverage portion of the seated. One could tell that it somehow affected the artiste herself, with the look of contented disappointment across her face, in her eyes – in that split second moment she allowed herself to display her vulnerability.
AirPiano: it’s the musical instrument Jo Hamilton is known to be playing with, giving her the distinctive standout in the pool of artistes in the industry. Unlike the air guitar, it is a real equipment, playable only through the connection of a USB cable, with sounds produced by the motions of hands over the device. It did made her look between a cross of doing something extraordinarily magical, and that of a kind-hearted witch (with her tall frame and long dress). That said, the music of Jo Hamilton is not restricted to just the limitation of performing with the AirPiano; in fact, in many performance instances on Wednesday night, she was playing and singing without it – with the aid of an acoustic guitar instead.
Deeper: if specifications are needed, her genres should cover 50% adult contemporary, 50% folk in my books. Fitting comfortably into any bedroom playlist, her music soothes a rough city day’s hassle, or even for meditation or yoga. Her voice lingers in familiar stretches and territories, like the female vocalist of the now-defunct band The Atomica Project, or even traces of a matured Cat Power, or maybe Bird York. Her music also incorporates the sounds of life that she hears along her journeys and in everyday living, presenting a personalized and special input into her own sounds.
Think Of Me: Possibly the most talkative performer I have seen, she talked on her journeys, the songbirds at the countryside she stayed in New Zealand for a few months, and even the simple act of her drinking water at the Recital Studio in between songs. Either she is a quirky type of person internally (like I am), or the nervous wrecker inside (like I am) – the audience will decide for themselves. I remembered enjoying her conversations, despite the lack of responses from the peering eyes of ours, with the exceptional bursts of laughter and the rather quietly loud noises of breathing. If you only have time to check out one song from Jo Hamilton, make it “Deeper”.
[CJ]
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