Camden New Journal - Music: Natalie Imbruglia | The Lexington

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The Review - MUSIC - grooves with RóISíN GADELRAB
Published: 27 August 2009

A night down the pub with Nat

REVIEW: NATALIE IMBRUGLIA
The Lexington

HOWEVER trendy, it’s not every day a Pentonville Road boozer’s upstairs room plays host to a bona-fide multi-million-selling pop star. Probably one of the smallest shows Natalie Imbruglia has played since she left Neighbours, the setting added intimacy to her music.
The 200-strong crowd, with strong representation from men of a certain age, wildly cheered Natalie’s back-catalogue forays such as Shiver, Big Mistake, the Alanis-lite Wishing I Was There, and Torn.
Mixed with hits and not-quite hits were songs from new album Come To Life – where the applause inevitably became a bit more polite.
Three of the new songs are co-written with Coldplay’s Chris Martin. Easily best was the haunting Lukas, while Fun added an epic quality to the trademark Imbruglia angst.
Next single, Want, introduced as “the sexy one”, was plodding pop that failed to convince – a weak echo of Kylie.
Even worse was current single Wild About You – about as wild as a bowl of bran flakes. Others, such as Scars, were pleasant but unremarkable, like not a few past Imbruglia selections. Airplay and the Coldplay connection could fashion some hits out of these, but on this showing the new album is not a bold revolutionary step.
There were real sugar-rush thrills from so much star power in such a small room but also sugar crashes, and a lingering feeling of hunger not quite satisfied.
alan stafford

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