Frank Ocean
Venue: Guvernment, Toronto
The eyes of the media world have been on Frank Ocean lately after he made some personal revelations about his sexual orientation. None of this should matter but it does provide more intrigue to an artist who is on the rise and one that stands out in a genre that can be so generic. Regardless of the added attention of late, Ocean lets his music do the talking and this gig was sold out months before any gossip was revealed or even his album ‘Channel Orange’ was released, (his first or second full album depending on your view point, I tend to fall into the latter).
Despite the rapturous reaction to Ocean’s appearance onstage, he seems to not be phased on his first full tour as a solo artist and unassumingly sits on a stool and crooned his version of Sade’s ‘By Your Side’. There was a group of musicians accompanying Ocean onstage with a guitar, bass, keyboard and drums but Frank’s voice was the real instrument on show. His take on the song was raw and heartfelt. He could sing the whole set acapella and it would still engage the audience.
It was midway through the set’s second song, ‘Summer Remains’ that the backdrop lit up with a multitude of spinning television projected with a barrage of images flashing before us, appropriate given the added media focus around Ocean these days. Ocean and his band then moved into the first song on ‘Channel Orange’, ‘Thinking About You’, and the shrieks from the fans were deafening as they sang back every word and melody.
The set list encompassed new songs from ‘Channel Orange’, and songs from his mixtape ‘Nostalgia Ultra’, and a couple of covers including Coldplay’s ‘Strawberry Swing’ which segued into, the Jay-Z and Kanye West ‘Watch the Throne’ track ‘Made in America’.
Ocean’s voice reached thrilling peaks, and his songs clearly resonated with the crowd especially ‘Super Rich Kids’, ‘Sweet Life’, ‘American Wedding’ and the ambitious, seven minute plus epic ‘Pyramids’, which morphed from a dance anthem into something more soulful seamlessly.
Before launching into the confessional, heart-wrenching gospel tinged ‘Bad Religion’. Ocean spoke to the crowd and gave one of the few endearingly shy speeches sprinkled throughout the performance. Ocean admits that “This past month has been wild, this song speaks to a particular situation for me and means a lot to me, and hope you can just vibe with me and give me love back”, he said to a thunderous roar of support. When his falsetto hits during the line “brings me to my knees”, it sends shivers up your spine. It felt like a therapeutic release, manifesting through Ocean onstage.
Ocean’s stage presence differs from contemporaries; it is less about posturing to the crowd but seemed calm and disconnected with the concept of stage moves or disingenuous banter. There was something decidedly pure about his presence and behaviour on his first tour. There was no need for theatrics and his energy and genuine gratitude for being given the opportunity to perform in front of people held the crowd captivated.
Ocean sat at a piano for his encore, ‘I Miss You’, a song he wrote for Beyonce for her most recent album. His poignant version was a satisfying end to a wonderfully self-assured performance from a man who has only just begun to find his true voice and it was a real aural experience. One could not help but wonder if this was a small glimpse of an immense talent before the sold out stadium shows come.