Little Boots, Big Apple

Say what you like about the internet killing music, but if a British artist can cross an ocean, sell out an iconic venue and have the whole crowd not only recognise and react to the songs, but know them word for word before a record has been released here, then cyberspace definitely has its pros. Just ask Blackpool popstrel, Little Boots, aka Victoria Hesketh. “I can’t believe this is a sold-out show at the Bowery Ballroom!” she says with genuine (and endearing) astonishment.

I’ve been a bit shruggy-shouldered about Little Boots in the past, but to say her brand of quality synth-pop works better live than on record is an understatement. Living up to the hype and owning the stage in a fabulously theatrical blue-green, bird of paradise-esque dress, she has style and substance.

Little Boots strides around in her big Louboutins with confidence. She calls for crowd participation during ‘Remedy’ and proudly showcases her brand new Moog before launching into ‘Mathematics’. Little Boots is a sprinkle of Alison Goldfrapp with a stronger-voiced pinch of Kylie… only this girl doesn’t need Cathy Dennis to write her tunes for her. One of the band steps in for Phil Oakey during ‘Symmetry’, but rather than trying to fill Oakey’s deadpan shoes, he keeps it subtle and Little Boots keeps the spotlight.

Finishing with ‘Love Kills‘, a Freddie Mercury and Giorgio Moroder cover, Clash’s companion for the night notes, “I love how everyone’s dancing, that never happens in New York.”

Words by Rachael Wright
Photos by Betsy Blundell