Live Review: King Princess, Clea

With her backing band arriving in matching boiler suits, Clea proves from the outset that she’s come prepared. Showing off her tremendous voice and having a good old dance throughout her set, the Brisbane musician perfectly sets the tone for what’s to follow. Playing from her upcoming album release, the singer exudes pure joy for her craft before closing out the opening set with the brilliantly boppy Dreaming.

It’s difficult to imagine how a live act can keep a crowd’s energy up for an entire show without a full-length LP under their belt. Then again, King Princess' devoted fanbase has allowed the performer to sell out The Forum before she’s legally allowed to drink in her native New York. It’s not the most normal of precursors to a gig, but King Princess (Mikaela Straus when she’s offstage) is not the most normal of performers. And that’s a damn good thing.

Kicking off with the solo Make My Bed before flawlessly slipping into Upper West Side, Straus takes no time to whip her crowd up into a frenzy of energy and excitement. “I’m fucking drunk,” she wryly asserts, before confidently swerving into a plethora of unreleased dance hits and slow jams – all the while maintaining a firm grasp of her gob-smacked audience.

As important as the hell of an epic performance she pulls off is the swaggered persona that Straus oozes on stage. She's proud, self-loving and, let’s face it, cocky in the limelight. This is certainly not a criticism on the King Princess persona – quite the opposite. It’s wholly refreshing, funny and downright enjoyable to watch Straus hijack “Big Dick Energy” and make it her own. She knows who she is, she loves who she is, and in doing so those watching her learn to do the same.

Closing her main set with the “the song that started it all, and the song that I’ll play ‘til I fucking die”, 1950 brings the crowd into riotous screams of devotion. The band move from strength to strength, showing off their tightness and effortless musicianship throughout the track. Building to a grand old singalong, Straus for a moment shifts the cool-dude act to the side and brings out a beaming smile for her audience. As King Princess or as Mikaela Straus, either way, this is one performer who at 19 has figured out what most musicians take years to hone and perfect on stage. She is a totally unique presence, and one that needs to be experienced live in all her glory.