Yeasayer & Bat For Lashes, Brighton Dome

You’ve probably heard the press bio by now: Natasha Kahn, raised in Pakistan, moved to Hertfordshire, travelled down to Brighton to study an art and music degree, gave birth to Bat For Lashes, got famous. That’s not the most difficult-sounding upbringing and with wealth from a very early age, how could this single-songwriter ever fail to have a smile on her face? Well she could be as happy as can be for all we know, but the moment she steps out to thousands of smiling at the Brighton Dome, a venue in her home-town, she looks like she’s reached an emotional high.

The applauders seem in particular jubilant spirits, with support act - Brooklyn’s Yeasayer - receiving one of the more rapturous responses any support band will receive this year. And when you consider this came after a set consisting highly of new, unreleased material, that makes the crowd response even more significant. What will arrive in 2010 as a follow-up to 2007’s imaginative breakthrough ‘All Hour Cymbals’, looks set to be far more percussion and sample based. All the energy found on the likes of ‘Sunrise’ and ‘2080’, the highlights of the set, is maintained and even bulked-up at times.

But this night is all about a homecoming. Only months before, Bat For Lashes was performing in the Dome’s neighbour venue, the Corn Exchange; half the capacity, devoid of the seated circle that sits intimidatingly at the top of the Dome, and far less atmospheric, this step up in such a short time highlights the wonderful job Kahn did on second album, ‘Two Suns’. You really notice the difference between debut ‘Fur And Gold’ and her latest when lead singles from both records are played back to back: ‘What’s A Girl To Do?’ gets the audience more active but the following ‘Daniel’ is the crowd’s favourite, the most now single in her discography. This frantic tale of teenage love sustains its charm on the live stage. Even low points on her second Mercury nominated album, ‘Pearl’s Dream’ and ‘Two Planets’, are given extra drive and importance when performed.

However much of the set’s finest moments come from the debut. This can be pin-pointed towards the luxurious, Victorian-era, royal feel of the venue which compliments the mystical content of ‘Fur And Gold’ perfectly. Kahn seems more at ease when performing the likes of ‘Trophy’ and closer ‘Prescilla’. The only thing this set lacks is a moment of respite, a period for the audience to simply sit and admire a far-from-static Kahn. The tranquil, retrospective ‘Travelling Woman’ and ‘Moon And Moon’ would have suited that perfectly, but they are absent from the performance.

But tonight’s not a time to be picky. Here, Brighton can truly claim to the making of a star. It’s a complete affirmation that Natasha Kahn has unleashed herself as a formidable artist, one seemingly not even half way through her journey of producing heartfelt, rousing 21-century anthems.