The streets of Hollywood are deserted with tumbleweed-like litter, jumping and floating along the empty sidewalks. This unusual state—even for a Monday night in the glitter capital of the world—is due to the Academy Awards taking place the evening before. Post Oscars, Skye—the sometime frontwoman for the trip-hop group Morcheeba—is performing for two nights in the city’s signature singer/songwriter venue Hotel Café as part of her two-city, four-gig mini-tour. Once inside this cozy venue on the final of the two evenings, it’s clear if there is anyone in Hollywood tonight, they’re packed tightly here.
Walking inconspicuously through the crowd with her head down staring at the Christmas light decorations on her fingers, Skye unceremoniously takes the stage. Once there, however, the natural-born performer looms glamorous. A fake-fur, cream-colored vest that looks like it is growing its own feathers over sequined black pants pulls all eyes towards her. Stalking comfortably on mile-high clear heels a stripper would kill for, Skye looks like the reincarnation of Diana Ross at the height of Studio 54.
As attention grabbing as Skye’s appearance is, though, it is her instantly identifiable silky vocals that draw attention to her. Backed by a well-rehearsed troupe of musicians, Skye launches into songs from her solo albums, focusing on her most recent release, 2012’s Back To Now. Whether it is headlining a major festival or at an intimate space such as the Hotel Café where the musicians are on a stage only six inches raised from the ground, Skye is a relaxed performer. Her voice not faltering for a second, she switches from the moody dark electronics of Back To Now to the more acoustic spacious styles of her previous albums, 2006’s Mind How You Go and 2009’s Keeping Secrets.
The crowd of canoodling couples, pushed together even more with the limited breathing room in the space, is one of committed fans who know all the lyrics and sing back to Skye on command. More than once she involves the audience; this includes “Troubled Heart” where she calls a boy-girl chorus to create the song’s tribal “heyaheyowa” chants. The upbeat “Nowhere” takes on a deeper, more somber tone when she dedicates it to her late father. The lyrics are about not being able to let go of a deceased one rather than a love lost. During the encore Skye takes over the stage on her own with a tiny guitar that she strums on “Not Broken,” from Keeping Secrets. At the close, visibly relieved it is over, Skye declares, “I die, just die, every time I do that song,” which endears her to her already worshipful audience even more.
A distinct highlight of the night is Skye’s sneaky cover of Justin Bieber’s “As Long As You Love Me.” Removing all the synthetic elements of the song and slowing it way down, Skye turns it into a panty-dropping ballad that has the whole place cuddling each other as it draws you into its core. Here you get lost in her honeyed “la-la-la-la-love me” refrain. The Bieb does a stripped down version of this hit, but he can’t quite hit the notes the way Skye can, his voice breaking at the most crucial points while hers positively throb at those moments. As much as Skye’s performance of her solo material more than meets expectations, it is her adaptation of Bieber that has everyone singing as they leave the venue—and for the entire week following the show.