This venue in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley proved to be the ideal location for this very special occasion. There was a decent-sized crowd in attendance for a Thursday night, and the energy felt throughout the room was palpable right from the get-go. Three female-fronted acts took to the stage, and it is safe to say that “girl power” was in full force.

Siena Larsson opened the live music entertainment for the evening, joined by her drummer Pat. It was the first time that she had performed in duo form, but it was far more than just vocals and drums. While Pat kept himself busy hitting the skins, Siena sang along to backing tracks of her breakup anthems. Just about all her big singles were there, including “Convenient”, “Mr. Bad News” and “Package Deal”. She also gave everyone a preview of her upcoming single “Mr. Nice Guy”, to be released on Friday the 12th of June. In addition to this, she hinted at her debut EP dropping later this year. Is this artist the next Taylor Swift? No, she is the first Siena Larsson!

Elle Em was next up on stage, and she was joined by her three male bandmates. They backed her up on bass, drums, and electric guitar, while Elle naturally took on lead vocal duties. Some songs featured spoken word sections as well as singing, with a hint of rap in there too! Elle was really excited to be there, and she let out countless happy screams throughout her performance! She has a stunningly powerful voice, and she kept it up not only during her set but while supporting the other performers too! In all honesty, it’s a wonder how she did not end up losing her voice. Talk about being a consummate professional! As for the music itself, it sounded quite a bit like Rage Against The Machine, Binger Geer and Mell0wRage all rolled into one!

TIAHN was celebrating the release of her debut EP “LiFe iS wEiRd”, and the spelling of that title is definitely intentional! It sums up her music pretty much perfectly as “angsty girl pop.” She admitted that one of the songs in her set originally had lyrics of a more explicit nature, which had been rewritten before its release. Much like most others out there, TIAHN has had her fair share of heartbreak and was not afraid to express it through the power of music!

Her four bandmates made her set an all-female affair. In addition to a bassist and drummer, there was Hazel Mei on keyboard and Ebony Westwood on trumpet. TIAHN is also in Hazel Mei’s band as the keyboard player, while Ebony is a member of at least EIGHT bands including TIAHN’s! She only joined the lineup last week but played the house down and it felt like she had been there for her whole life! She is definitely a versatile performer, as are the other members of TIAHN’s band. 

A few covers were sprinkled throughout a setlist largely consisting of originals, and TIAHN flat out refused to do an encore. When asked about it, she cheekily flipped the bird with a great big smile on her face! The fun and frivolity did not stop after the music though, as fans really got into what was offered in the way of merch. The guy behind the merch table, who is TIAHN’s partner, was even dressed as a star! The launch of TIAHN’s EP was a massive success, and a very enjoyable night out in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley!

Words and Image By Alan Atkinson