Alison Moyet Enchants Eindhoven with Power and Class
British singer Alison Moyet performed Wednesday evening in a sold-out main hall of the Muziekgebouw in Eindhoven, The Netherlands. It was an evening full of musical craftsmanship, soulful singing, and a palpable mutual love between artist and audience. Moyet became world-famous as half of the synthpop duo Yazoo in the early eighties. Despite now celebrating her 40-year jubilee as a solo artist, she proved in Eindhoven that her voice has lost none of its power. She effortlessly filled every corner of the hall with her bluesy contralto voice.
Geneviève Alison Jane Moyet, born on June 18, 1961, in Billericay, England, and raised in Basildon, began her musical career as a teenager with punk and R&B before breaking through with Yazoo, the duo she formed in 1981 with Vince Clarke. While Clarke had just left Depeche Mode, Moyet was just beginning what would become an impressive career. Ironically, she went to school with two future members of that same Depeche Mode: Martin Gore and Andrew Fletcher.
With Yazoo, Moyet scored worldwide hits like “Only You” and “Don’t Go,” both of which were performed during the concert in Eindhoven. After Yazoo broke up in 1983, Moyet released her solo album “Alf,” named after the nickname Clarke gave her. This album set her solo career ablaze, featuring hits including “Love Resurrection,” which was saved for the encore on Wednesday evening.
Moyet appeared on stage in an elegant, understated outfit and opened the evening with “Fire,” a single from her 2007 album “The Turn.” From the first moment, it was clear that her voice is still as robust and emotionally charged as in her heyday. She switched effortlessly between recent songs, such as “Such Small Ale” from last year’s released “Key,” and classics like “All Cried Out” from her debut album “Alf.” Between songs, she regularly addressed the audience. She spoke candidly and with humor about aging, about making music in a changing industry, and about the meaning behind some songs. The audience hung on her every word. The atmosphere was intimate despite the size of the hall.
One of the emotional highlights of the evening was “This House.” The performance was bare and vulnerable, with tender synth accompaniment that gave her voice all the space to shine. Not long after followed an acoustic version of “It Won’t Be Long,” also from “Hoodoo,” in which she touched hearts deeply with minimal means. Moyet also proved herself as an interpreter of others’ work. “Whispering Your Name,” a cover of Jules Shear, she performed with such conviction that it felt like her own song. And, of course, the Yazoo numbers were not missing: the melancholic “Only You,” the rousing “Situation,” and the catchy “Don’t Go” had the audience on their feet. The latter song closed the concert, a perfect climax after a richly filled evening.
It was striking how many different albums Moyet touched upon during the evening: from her solo debut “Alf” to “Hoodoo,” “Essex,” and “Hometime” to her later work on “The Turn,” “The Minutes,” and the recent “Key.” In doing so, she demonstrated not only the breadth of her oeuvre but also how strong her music still is today. “Changeling” and “All Signs of Life,” both from “The Minutes” (2013), sounded powerful and fresh. In total, she performed twenty songs, with a setlist that could please both longtime fans and new listeners. Her backing band, only two men strong, played in service to her voice and her story.
Alison Moyet delivered a fantastic concert in Eindhoven on Wednesday evening, a journey through more than four decades of music history told by a singer who has never stopped growing. Her enthusiasm, her connection with the audience, her vocal power, and her rich repertoire made this evening a spectacular concert. Eindhoven could count itself lucky with a live performance by this legend, live, still in top form.
Photos (c) Anneke Klungers
