Ever since Clarity became “that song” – you know, that insanely catchy tune that you hated to love and then loved to hate – I’ve kind of resented Louisa Allen, better known by her stage name, Foxes. But, after her whirlwind of a show at The Toff In Town on Wednesday night, I’ve come to terms and even managed to move on from this resentment.
Sydney duo Cosmo’s Midnight opened the night with a groove-inducing set of chilled out electronica. Over the course of their half-hour set, the pair treated the steadily growing crowd to a dreamy array of originals and remixes.
With only her 2012 Warrior EP to her name, I was a bit skeptical about the depth of the material that Foxes would have to perform, but once again, the Brit proved me wrong, treating the Toff to both material off of her EP and her forthcoming debut album, Glorious, for a substantial 45 minute set. Onstage, Allen was vivacious, as she raced back and forth, flipped her luscious locks more times than I can count, and shimmied her crop-top bearing hips. Her command of the stage appeared much to the delight of the wide-eyed fan boys admiring the singer from their front row positions. Seriously, at points, Foxes was just one note away from someone dropping to a knee for a proposal.
Allen’s voice was unfaltering throughout and reminiscent of a much less brooding Lana Del Rey mixed with a hint of Zooey Deschanel. Since a large portion of the singer-songwriter’s set is yet to be released, sing-a-longs proved to be few and far between for the adoring crowd, but singles Echo and Youth gave the audience golden opportunities to bounce along with the animated Allen. After powering through her collaboration with Rudimental, Right Here, Foxes gave a humble goodbye wave and flitted backstage.
Of course, the night wouldn’t have been complete without Clarity, so much to no one’s surprise, the glamorous Allen hopped back on stage and launched into the monster hit. The Zedd collaboration has been given the remix treatment by nearly every subgenre of electronic dance music and has been played just a few times over too many, but Foxes managed to breathe fresh life into the song, growing the track from a rich acoustic version to an all-out dance party. With her infectious stage presence, enchanting voice, and knack for pulling in a diverse fanbase, Foxes has got clearly got all of the tools to move beyond being the voice of Clarity and into a role as an indie-pop darling.
BY LAUREN GILL
Loved: The groovy vibe the disco ball gave off.
Hated: Lack of British banter.
Drank: Pear cider.
