Review: Hurray for the Riff Raff, Trinity Centre

Being an opening act is generally a springboard to get your name out there and some people would try very hard to convince the audience. Although tonight Fenne Lily looks so laid-back in her pyjama bottoms (as she calls them) and big platform boots. She apologies: “I haven’t made an effort because this is a hometown gig. I want to think that everyone here will accept me anyway”. Lily doesn’t need to try hard as her unusual stage look is the last thing that we notice once she starts singing. As her blonde locks fall onto her angelic face, Fenne juggles smoothly between electric and acoustic guitars, delicate accompaniments which prettify her soft-toned voice. She’s only twenty but her music and her lyrics definitely carry a mature depth. Her performance of Brother for instance is poetically touching and the audience can only respect her for opening her heart so genuinely to them.

Hurray for the Riff Raff hit the stage (where a Puerto Rican flag is proudly covering the organ) as the crowd gets bigger and cosier in the Trinity Centre. It isn’t a full house tonight unlike their previous gig at The Lantern but the atmosphere is electric. Playing in front of a sign that reads “We’re all in this together”, the band have a different appearance to match with the new direction that lead singer Alynda Segarra has taken. The bluegrass and the folk that were previously so characteristic of the New-Orleans-based band has been heavily replaced by funky beats, seventies influenced rock and Latino vibes. Their new album The Navigator released earlier this year composes half of the set tonight.

It’s impossible not to gaze at Segarra, whose deep expression and bulging eyes give her outlandish charisma. The American of Puerto Rican origins has an interesting backstory of train-hopping vagrancy and this definitely contributes to her special aura. She is reasonably angry about the political climate and the catastrophic state her county has been left in after the hurricane. Rican Beach, a song with Afro-Cuban beats, is like a battle cry: “Now all the politicians / they just squawk their mouths / they said we’ll build a wall to keep them out”. She is so believable and her stage presence is astounding. The whole band has a contagious energy and although most of the songs have heavy meanings, the melodies get everyone dancing. Understandably renowned local gig-goer Big Jeff goes into a trance, especially on Living in the City, a Velvet Underground-influenced fun song that portrays her ex-urban life in the Bronx. Palan’te is an empowerment hymn to remind us to always keep going and the encore is a terrific cover of Bruce Springsteen’s Dancing in the Dark.

The strong set is a perfect balance between political engagement, social consciousness and having a good time. The catchy songs are a faultless combination of rock’n’roll and Latin soul and the whole performance is incendiary. Hurray for the Riff Raff leave the stage with the audience clenching their fists and asking for more.

Photos by John Morgan