REVIEW: SOUND:CHECK Music Event

On Saturday night, I was invited down to SOUND:CHECK at St Johns of Hackney; and to say it was magical is an understatement.

Adorned with Persian rugs, the stage had been set out like a recording studio; with a piano, a double base cello, and microphone stand stood in their place.  Adjacent, there was a smaller stage for the night’s backing vocalists: Onetaste Choir. And the crazy thing is that this event was taking place inside a church.

It’s this church setting that made the experience that much more special. As each musician came and performed a number of their songs, it was as if we, the audience, were taking part in some type of communion; and for me, I was happy to accept this sacrament in the form of singers Eska and Mara Carlyle; who I think stole the night with their hypnotic high registers. One of the stand-out moments was Carlyle’s cover of Lauryn Hill’s ‘Ex Factor’; the way her voice harmonised with both choir and the booming church organ, it took me to some higher realm.

Enjoy the sweet sounds of Eska and Mara Carlyle below: