Live Review: Lucy Dacus, Grace Turner

“We’re all a bit jetlagged," declared Grace Turner at her first show since returning from Austin's SXSW. It doesn’t change the fact that Turner’s voice shone through her set of alt-folk that varied from delicate to roaring in the blink of an eye.

The juxtaposition of her red Flying V guitar with a generally folky feel seems to represent a lot about the artist. Turner's seemingly not afraid to stir things up with her style or songwriting – both of which are top-shelf. Released tracks Dead Or Alive and Easy I Fall mingled with the unreleased, including the final track, which gave Turner and her band a chance to rock out. Another wonderful act to come out of Newcastle.

Lucy Dacus arrived on stage solo, plugged in her guitar and started with a new song. It perfectly exemplified the confidence that has seen the young artist release two critically acclaimed albums, along with being one part of the supergroup trio, boygenius. Addictions, her second song, brought a threesome of musicians onto the stage, adding a well balanced texture to her sound, although that’s not to say that Dacus couldn’t perform solo with the same clout.

“This is my first show in Australia, ever,” announces Dacus. It’s a significant milestone for any artist to make the trek which she would later declare a being the furthest she’s ever been from her home of Richmond, Virginia. “It’s beautiful and cool,” she placated, certainly pumping up the hometown ego of the crowd.

Goosebumps bubbled during The Shell, followed by the straightforward storytelling of Nonbeliever. The tracks that feel so personal on the record felt even more engrossing in the live setting, especially with the mostly full Oxford Art Factory quiet and respectful for the majority of the set.

Dacus needn’t have apologised for her French as her unique rendition of the Edith Piaf classic, La Vie En Rose, was delightfully quaint. Timefighter built to its rocky conclusion, giving the band a chance to cut loose, just a little bit, as did Map On A Wall and I Don’t Wanna Be Funny Anymore.

Rounding out the main set with Night Shift and Historians, the bookends of her Historian album saw the crowd enthralled and almost dancing, but it’s in the quiet moments that Dacus had the crowd in the palm of her hand.

“You’ve made this night truly magical," Lucy Dacus said following the first Aussie show of what, will hopefully, be many. After all, the love affair that Australia has with her and her musical friends is only going to swell.