Dazzling the crowd with dreamy vocals, deft usage of an incredible array of instruments, spontaneously created loops, and a whole lot of passion, Australian singer-songwriter superstar Tash Sultana held the audience spellbound on June 11 at Hard Rock Live - Sacramento at Fire Mountain.
A multiple Australian Recording Industry Association award winner, Sultana, who stated this performance “is my second-to-last show in my 20s,” arose from Melbourne, Australia, street busker to major headliner in the past 10 years, accruing multi-billion streams along the way (they first performed in California in February 2017). At Hard Rock Live – Sacramento, they offered soundscapes and bold vocals and instrumental improvisations.
Presenting an empowering mélange of music types including reggae, urban jazz, roots, folk, alt-rock, dub, and a certain measure of hypnotic, psychedelic-tinged alchemy, Sultana presented career-spanning material that included “Jungle,” which rattled the music world’s cage nine years ago, up to and including material from their latest six-song EP, “Return to the Roots.” Sultana’s angelic yet powerful voice and top-notch acumen on assorted instruments, most notably the guitar, they offered a rich tapestry of sound.
Sultana, who till about 2021 delivered one-person shows, excelled on the electric guitar, and also regaled the crowd with integrated jams on the oud, trumpet, saxophone, flute, keyboards, drums, synth, chimes, panpipe, and assorted hand-percussion instruments, all presented with splendid stage lights and imagery. While they did execute about half of the concert as a solo performer, Sultana had a supporting band that contributed deep booming bass, sharply struck drums, and keyboards. While Sultana passionately played inside kind of an igloo of instruments, they did move energetically about the stage quite a bit, bringing cheers and ovations while sometimes strolling the front of the boards, and at other times pausing to play or sing atop raised platforms at either side of the stage.
This night’s concert incorporated several pieces of music featured on “Return to the Roots,” a six-song EP that was just released on May 28. Such songs included the mesmerizing, midtempo “Kiss the Sky,” with Sultana’s trumpet passages helping define the tune, as well as a reggae-flavored, hip hoppy performance of their new single, which offers a push-back to life in the fast lane, “Milk & Honey.” In addition, Sultana played self-reflective songs, “Hazard to Myself” and “Ain’t it Kinda Funny” from “Return to the Roots”:
“Ain't it kinda funny how the time just rolls on by? / One minute, you're nineteen, and then you're twenty-nine / Looking back at all the old photographs / Oh, you forgot the things you did / 'Cause you were so fucked up and out of control.”
The show included two big hits from their 2016 “Notion” EP: the title track, a ballad with a tender guitar opening, and “Jungle,” the captivating twangy/jangly slow-tempo piece of music spotlighted by some quickly rapped lyrics. Suntana’s set also featured the ethereal, trumpet-featured "Mystik," as well as "Pink Moon," a dreamy ballad. In addition to those pieces of music, both from the 2018-released “Flow State” album, Saltana offered the contemplative jazz ballad, “Crop Circles,” from their 2021 “Terra Firma” project. At one point while on sax, Sultana worked in a snippet of Gerry Rafferty’s 1970s hit, “Baker Street.”
Meghan and David Brown, from Chico, Calif., witnessed the entire show from the rail, front and center. “This was our first time seeing Tash live, I've been listening to her for about seven years,” Meghan Brown said. “I really am loving ‘Hazard to Myself’ from their newest album “Return to the Roots.” But “Jungle” is one of my all-time favorites; it’s been my cellphone ringtone for years now. Tash’s music is just so complex and layered it’s amazing to see it live. Me and my husband have been following her on her YouTube, and from seeing her first video of her playing ‘Notion’ in the streets, I've been hooked, and it’s been amazing watching her grow and <now> getting to see her locally. Tash is unbelievably talented. I love seeing a women having so much musical talent, it’s beautiful.”
Opening the show was Lime Cordiale (pronounced “Lyme Cor-dee-al”), an indie pop/rock outfit formed in Syndey, Australia, in 2009. Led by brothers Oli and Louis Leimbach – one on guitar, one on bass, and both on vocals (plus sax, trumpet, and kazoo) – the five-piece band warmed up the crowd with a set of their own material, such as “Temper Temper,” “Robbery,” closer “Inappropriate Behavior,” and the recent “Love is Off the Table,” along with a cover of the Divinyls provocative 1990 hit, “I Touch Myself.”
