Two and a half decades after the release of her iconic debut 'Left of the Middle', Natalie Imbruglia is celebrating the milestone with 'London - Live', recorded on the anniversary trek at Shepherds Bush Empire on 12th October, 2022, as part of her ‘Left of the Middle 25th Anniversary Tour’. A fantastic snapshot of a deserved victory lap, it's available on CD, streaming, and vinyl formats.
"Can you believe that it's been twenty-five years since 'Left of the Middle?! Yeah, we're that old", says a scarcely-believing Natalie Imbruglia, letting out gasp of laughter, as 'London - Live' kicks off.
She's right; it is hard to believe that it's been that long since she began her music career. Released in 1997, the former Neighbours star did a Kylie, and turned her focus away from acting, towards music, with the resulting platter - her debut album - proving a huge success, racking up over a million sales in the UK, and charting in the top ten in the US, Italy, Sweden, and Australia - where it reached No.1.
'Left of the Middle' was a major triumph, repositioning Imbruglia as a credible artist, on an album that produced four top-twenty singles, and in 'Torn', a major global smash hit. Celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2022, Natalie took to the road for a string of dates to mark the milestone, and recorded during that tour at Shepherd's Bush Empire, 'London - Live' takes in the full eighteen-track show.
As part of the tour, the album was performed almost in its entirety, with only the angsty electro dirge 'Don't You Think' missing. That's a whopping eleven songs from her best-loved album, but there's more to Natalie than that admittedly towering release, and the set kicks off with 'What if Feels Like', the first of five from 2021 comeback 'Firebird'.
With that out of the way, 'Wishing I Was There' is the must succinct indication of what the songstress is all about. This is late '90s edgy pop at its finest; angsty, tuneful, electro-infused sounds that perfectly recall the later part of the decade.
Talking about the "bookends" of her debut and latest albums which frame this release, the British-Aussie star confesses; "I feel like a lot of you have grown up with me", with the likes of earworm 'Wrong Impression' (2001) and the melancholic 'Shiver' (2005) charting the territory in between.
It's 'Left of the Middle' though, that is the centrepiece, and where single 'Smoke' remains achingly beautiful - perhaps her finest moment - 'One More Addiction' is a '90s rock gem, 'Leave Me Alone' is Portishead's 'Glory Box' in all but name, and 'Big Mistake' - with its starts, stops and samples - is the Garbage song they never wrote.
Of course the song that blew the barn doors wide open, 'Torn' garners the biggest reaction, and like the rest of the album it's recreated with precision, with the band on point, reproducing every minite nuance. Natalie's voice meanwhile, hasn't aged a day, and all the while, the singer seems to be having as much fun as the audience, relishing in looking back on the album that changed the trajectory of her career.
Produced by the singer, Imbruglia says of the release; “The experience I had on the ‘Left of the Middle 25th Anniversary Tour’ is one I will treasure forever. The whole tour was really special, and much of that came down to the audience each night. They were singing their hearts out at every show. I was watching people have their own connection with different songs throughout the set. It was very nostalgic for all of us. Throughout the process of working on this album I got to relive that all over again.”
A fantastic memento of an occasion worth celebrating.
'London - Live' is available now. Click here to order.
She's right; it is hard to believe that it's been that long since she began her music career. Released in 1997, the former Neighbours star did a Kylie, and turned her focus away from acting, towards music, with the resulting platter - her debut album - proving a huge success, racking up over a million sales in the UK, and charting in the top ten in the US, Italy, Sweden, and Australia - where it reached No.1.
'Left of the Middle' was a major triumph, repositioning Imbruglia as a credible artist, on an album that produced four top-twenty singles, and in 'Torn', a major global smash hit. Celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2022, Natalie took to the road for a string of dates to mark the milestone, and recorded during that tour at Shepherd's Bush Empire, 'London - Live' takes in the full eighteen-track show.
As part of the tour, the album was performed almost in its entirety, with only the angsty electro dirge 'Don't You Think' missing. That's a whopping eleven songs from her best-loved album, but there's more to Natalie than that admittedly towering release, and the set kicks off with 'What if Feels Like', the first of five from 2021 comeback 'Firebird'.
With that out of the way, 'Wishing I Was There' is the must succinct indication of what the songstress is all about. This is late '90s edgy pop at its finest; angsty, tuneful, electro-infused sounds that perfectly recall the later part of the decade.
Talking about the "bookends" of her debut and latest albums which frame this release, the British-Aussie star confesses; "I feel like a lot of you have grown up with me", with the likes of earworm 'Wrong Impression' (2001) and the melancholic 'Shiver' (2005) charting the territory in between.
It's 'Left of the Middle' though, that is the centrepiece, and where single 'Smoke' remains achingly beautiful - perhaps her finest moment - 'One More Addiction' is a '90s rock gem, 'Leave Me Alone' is Portishead's 'Glory Box' in all but name, and 'Big Mistake' - with its starts, stops and samples - is the Garbage song they never wrote.
Of course the song that blew the barn doors wide open, 'Torn' garners the biggest reaction, and like the rest of the album it's recreated with precision, with the band on point, reproducing every minite nuance. Natalie's voice meanwhile, hasn't aged a day, and all the while, the singer seems to be having as much fun as the audience, relishing in looking back on the album that changed the trajectory of her career.
Produced by the singer, Imbruglia says of the release; “The experience I had on the ‘Left of the Middle 25th Anniversary Tour’ is one I will treasure forever. The whole tour was really special, and much of that came down to the audience each night. They were singing their hearts out at every show. I was watching people have their own connection with different songs throughout the set. It was very nostalgic for all of us. Throughout the process of working on this album I got to relive that all over again.”
A fantastic memento of an occasion worth celebrating.
'London - Live' is available now. Click here to order.