Concert review: Paolo Nutini, Powerstation

Scottish singer Paolo Nutini.

Wearing a plain white T-shirt against an colourful street art backdrop, Paolo Nutini was a simple but eye-catching figure as he took the stage at the Powerstation for his first ever New Zealand concert last night.

The Scottish songsmith plays venues like the O2 Arena in Europe, but seemed delighted to be performing in such an intimate venue, and still brought his nine-piece band (including three-piece horn section), and a dazzling light show to create quite the party atmosphere for the sold-out crowd.

He was mostly there to showcase the songs from his 2014 album Caustic Love - his first release in five years, and quite a step away from his previous Brit-pop roots into a more blues-inspired, funk and RnB direction. And those were the songs that shone.

Opener Scream (Funk My Life Up) was a highlight, with punchy brass alternating with his raspy croon, and the nonchalant Mark-Ronson-esque arrangement working nicely to move the crowd.

Let Me Down Easy introduced Nutini's more seductive side, the sliding 70s groove also showcasing the powerful husky vocals of his lone female backing vocalist. Jumping back to one of the hits from 2009 album Sunny Side Up, Comin Up Easy had a different intensity in a live setting - what comes across as quite a laid back tune on the record had an almost gospel-ish vibe on stage. Not in a musical sense, but in the atmosphere he created as he led the crowd through lyrics like "It was in love I was created, and in love is how I hope I die".

Some of his straighter more rock-oriented tracks like Jenny Don't Be Hasty and Cherry Blossom were a good opportunity to let loose with the really gravelly side of his vocal chords, but were less musically interesting, and there was a definite lull right in the middle of the set with too many slow numbers on a row (Better Man, These Streets, and Diana), although it was touching to hear that Looking For Something was inspired by his mother, who was surprisingly in the crowd.

Numpty was a shimmying, slightly cheeky bright spot in the lull, but the atmosphere ramped back up again for the sultry torch song One Day, and a new rollicking version of Pencil Full Of Lead, which eschews the slightly gimmicky harmonica and hoe-down style of the original for a much more meaty country-rock approach, was a real arms-in-the-air moment.

He rounded things up with sweet ballad No Other Way, and the slightly earnest, empowerment anthem Iron Sky. That would've been a very serious place to leave things though, so luckily he came back for an extended encore.

Though that too proved to be a little on the slow and downbeat side, with an emphasis on romantic songs from his back catalogue (Candy, Last Request), and felt a little more like an outro than an exclamation mark style finale.

Overall the Italian Scotsman proved an able showman, in fine voice, and with plenty of presence in front of his excellent band, and the crowd clearly enjoyed themselves. But there's only so much you can do to elevate square songs in a live setting, and Nutini needs a few more true sizzlers in his set to really fly.

* Paolo Nutini performs at the Powerstation again this evening, with a few final tickets being released today.

Who: Paolo Nutini
Where and when: Powerstation, April 6 & 7.

- nzherald.co.nz