Live Review: Alexandra @ The Milk Factory

The Milk Factory was packed for Alexandra’s Honeycomb single launch with what appeared to be close family and friends chatting away and catching up before she took to the stage. Receiving a personalised “Alexandra” stamp on the way in, we couldn’t help but be impressed with this clever marketing tool considering how difficult gig stamps usually are to wash off.

Alexandra kicked off the night with Lover, a quirky, infectious track that got the crowd clapping and nodding to the beat from the first verse. While the mix was a tad guitar heavy, Alexandra’s powerful voice shone through as she took charge straight out of the gates.

Next up was Are You Ready?, a song which really showcased her unique sound and allowed her to reach some impressive pitches which resembled that of Dolores O’Riordan from The Cranberries. The backing band was well rehearsed and really aided the overall professionalism of the performance.

“This stripped back performance coupled with the intimate little venue made this song rather special, allowing us to focus on the star of night.”

Richer which had a slightly heavier rock feel to it before busting out Wolves from her ‘Lionheart’ EP. While it was usually a struggle to hear the backing vocalist, it was amazing to hear the vocal harmonies when they became audible. Personally, this song live is a clear banger!

Showing her fun side, the leading lady then took a moment to introduce the band with some interesting Alexandra-inspired nicknames. One-by-one we were introduced to “Ally-fat, Ally-skinny, Ally-pookie”, and the female vocal duo dubbed “Top Deck”. The rather folky Sleeper was next and while the vocals were slightly drowned out this was still a strong, catchy song with a subtle Of Monsters and Men vibe.

“We’re going to slow things down a bit” announced Alexandra as she began to play About Now. With some impressive fingerpicking on her telecaster, this track was a beautiful solo piece which served as a nice break from the band’s full sound. This stripped back performance coupled with the intimate little venue made this song rather special, allowing us to focus on the star of night.

“Her professionalism and maturity stood out and the quality of her work speaks for itself.”

Mallee Bull, Life Indoors, and Follow Through were next and these songs showed an impressive versatility in both their composition and vocal performances as Alexandra dabbled with some country and rock influences. The penultimate song, Pretty Faces came about all too soon. This captivating track with a slick little guitar solo, powerful breakdown, and impressive vocals, making it a great follow-up single from this budding Brisbane artist.

Alexandra proceeded to thank everyone for coming out before dressing the male members of the band in blonde wigs which even Sia would have approved of! Honeycomb was the final song of the evening which featured some beautiful vocal control. With some members of the crowd singing along it was humbling to see how supportive and entrenched people were with this song. Giving it everything she had, Alexandra gave a fantastic performance of her latest single and ended the night on a high.

Overall, Alexandra gave a pretty stellar performance with only a few minor pitch issues which we’ll put down to nerves. While the overall live mix was a bit of an issue, there was absolutely no sign of anything distracting this focused young woman. Her professionalism and maturity stood out and the quality of her work speaks for itself. Alexandra gave us a thoroughly enjoyable performance and we look forward to seeing her perform on a grander scale!