When Dorian Electra dropped Fanfare late last year, it was clear that the record was made to transcend into a live show.
At Electric Brixton on Friday night, the album does exactly that. For an hour and 10 minutes, the south London stage hosts a frenzied exposition of fame with Dorian Electra the ringmaster.
Electra swaggers on to the grand trumpets of Fanfare opener ‘Symphony’ before striking a pose in front of the Renaissance-inspired visuals. “Give me everything, need the kitchen sink,” they snarl as they cast an eye at the audience.
Fanfare is very much Dorian Electra’s magnum opus. On debut Flamboyant and sophomore My Agenda, the artist shapeshifted their way through lords, incels and workaholics as stages worldwide got bigger and bigger. By the time Electra released their third record in Fanfare, they shed those characters and amped up the satire to fully embrace the star they had become.
It doesn’t take long to grasp that idea at Electric Brixton either. After ‘Symphony’, Electra rushes into the brilliant and radio-ready ‘Idolize’, a larger-than-life grungy pop hit that demands their fans ‘Idolize my bed in the middle of the night’ – it’s all very tongue in cheek, but the brilliance is that adoration for the artist is truly there.
The night is a true homage to Fanfare, with those tracks making up the majority of the setlist. There is a knowing wink before fan-favourite ‘Flamboyant’ and a quirky piano-led version of breakthrough single ‘Career Boy’. Elsewhere, ‘Ram It Down’ is evidence of a deep cut on the singer’s discography that has stood the test of time.
There’s so much to unpick as Electra slides from one track into the next but the brilliance of the star’s shows has always been that nothing is ever taken too seriously. That kitsch hasn’t disappeared as Electra allows themselves to be beheaded and strands of hair thrown out to the crowd. In another moment, they twerk on a giant puppet in a piece of unforgettable live music.
The night ends with biting single ‘Freak Mode’ as Electra flings themselves off the stage and into the crowd to surf through the sky. On Fanfare, the singer may play with the idea of their fame, but their status as one of the most exciting artists out there is no joke.
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