Narc. Magazine Online
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Steve Spithray enjoys an early evening showcase of some of the best of Teesside
Image by Emily Whyborne
Stockton Globe made big promises, upon re-opening after its grand refurb in 2021, about its sister venue The Link, and how they would nurture local artists through developmental shows there with a view to getting the best acts onto the main Globe stage next door and beyond. For one reason or another it didn’t really happen but it’s nice now to see The Link being used more frequently for some local showcases.
Now, I do like an early curfew but I wasn’t sure how tonight’s 6pm doors might affect attendance. I needn’t have worried because when opener Noah Wing takes the stage there are already plenty in for his cute mix of covers and his own tracks. Lorde’s Green Light was a highlight despite the early crowd being overly chatty. But he’s only 17 and look where Tom A. Smith is now. One to watch, for sure, and exactly what this night is really about.
Next up, NARC. veteran Jay Moussa-Mann is showcasing her The Lady Vanishes album, released in June this year, with an acoustic set of bedroom songs covering everything from growing up in Turkey, to volleyball, to being uncool, to women’s rights. A new unnamed song (sample lyric “the enemy is coming, hideaway”) is immediately snappy with Suzanne Vega vibes and she catches the first singalong of the night on Tell Me If I’m Wrong. American Tennessee is another highlight.
Enter Marina Josephina, to the stage where she made her original music debut just three years ago at an open mic night. Then just as now, it is just her, her piano and her jazzy pop ditties for fans of Olivia Dean et al. So only fitting she would open with debut single Fool Like Me quickly followed by What You Deserve and the first newie of the night Hard To Say. The intimate setting ahead of Marina’s big Stockton ARC headliner next month allows for a little road-testing and the new material continues the singer’s preferred themes of caring and positivity while the relaxed and personal atmosphere really allows Marina’s personable character to shine, particularly during the between song chat.
Roll With You and another newie Fine Line are slower, showcasing the singer’s versatility, while a couple of covers thrown in for good measure show she is not afraid to put her own spin on the big hits. What also impresses tonight along with the large early crowd, is that (apart from a few local faces skulking around at the back) this is Marina’s crowd, quietly building her own fanbase not from the usual gnarly old gig-goers, but music fans who are perhaps less familiar with (or constricted by) the local scene…
