Joana Serrat
Le Public Space, Newport
Tue 3 Apr
Joana Serrat is perfect for Newport’s most individual arts venue, Le Public Space. The Americana artist, signed to independent label Loose, creates some very intimate but strikingly bold songs on her latest release Dripping Springs; Le Public Space is equally courageous in bringing great music to its relatively small 100 capacity audience. Maybe it’s this commonality that has enticed Serrat to take a brief sojourn over the border on this largely England-centred UK tour.
Or maybe it’s her well-traveled past: a young Spanish artist, now making and recording music in America. Either way, Serrat is a great coup for Le Public Space who have an excellent season of live music on offer. Serrat has a host of talented Americana artists performing on Dripping Springs (don’t let the odd title put you off, it’s the name of the city in Texas where the album was recorded), a testament to how highly-regarded she’s becoming on the Americana scene.
For her UK tour, Serrat will be performing her new material solo and acoustic. If you have the album, it will be a treat to hear those excellent songs stripped back from the huge vistas created by her studio band; if not, you’ll hear a rising singer-songwriter sharing her reflections on time, desire and longing.
Tickets: £8. Info www.lepublicspace.co.uk
words JOHN PAUL DAVIES photos JOAN ALSINA