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MELANIE MARTINEZ (Photo – @samantham_shots

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MELANIE MARTINEZ
+ Upsahl
@ Margaret Court Arena, Melbourne,
5th February 2024
(Live Review)

Review by Stephanie Tang

Photos by Samantha Meuleman (@samantham_shots)

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MELANIE MARTINEZ (Photo – @samantham_shots

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Alt pop manic dream girl Melanie Martinez finally brings the Portals tour to Australia. Trailing mossy vines and cry baby tears in her wake, Martinez is rebirthed and performs exclusively as her new alter ego.

UPSAHL starts the night off strong, bringing fierce vocals, fiery guitar runs and sassy dance moves. The arena floor is nearly full, with arms waving and shoulders swaying to hypnotic grunge beat “Drugs”. Obviously, a seasoned performer, she’s got eyes following her every move absolutely owning that stage. Not just the mosh but even in the seats, “No Hands” an electric boppy track had spectators on their feet and hands clapping.

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UPSAHL (Photo – @samantham_shots

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Special mention to the touring guitarist please, utterly shredding every note into the atmosphere. UPSAHL brought the vocals, but the performance would not have been nearly as visceral without their maestro of a guitarist. Showing huge vocal prowess through velvety lows and high notes solid enough to punch you in the face, UPSAHL talks the talk and walks the walk. Bathed in blue and red, “Sick Pretty Mind”, a creeping electronic track that would have Frankenstein dancing, hits differently in a sea of fairy wings, elf ears and “Earthlings” as Martinez’s fans now call themselves.

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UPSAHL (Photo – @samantham_shots

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The last few years have seen female artists crush the alternative music scene. From Billie Eilish to Peach PRC and Scene Queen. Their success can be pointed to their unique fashion, personality, and niche sound. In 2015 when Martinez released Cry Baby, there was minimal successful female musicians that pushed the boundaries of surrealism like she did. Seeing the black curtain fall, leafy tendrils droop from the sky and wild unkempt creatures skulk on to the stage through red smoke, I knew tonight would be a trip.

Emerging on stage, a creature with four eyes, large, pointed ears and chubby cheeks greets the crowd adorned in ivy and flowers. Ironically “Death” opens the show. So mesmerising is Martinez’s voice along with the dreamy backdrop we are taken to another dimension when bang! The crashing bass shatters the air and suddenly it’s a frantic free for all amidst swirling synths, bodies and crunching guitars. Launching straight into sugary pop song “Void” and ethereal “Tunnel Vision” it becomes apparent we may be treated to the entirety of her latest album Portals tonight.

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MELANIE MARTINEZ (Photo – @samantham_shots

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Whilst magical, there is something beautifully grotesque in tonight’s imagery. Watching her four back up dancers contort limbs and faces to the jumping beat with lasers of green, red, and cobalt blue cutting through the air is like being in another dimension. The movie background of butterflies, paradise gone wrong, and a pink tentacle thing combined with Martinez’s beady eyes and wildly choregraphed dance moves, compete for your visual attention.

Meanwhile crazed cat eyed fae adorned with flower crowns and cry babies in pigtail plaits, bows and Mary Janes were having the moon party of their lives. Fans showed their appreciation by dressing up as different eras within Martinez’s discography. There were more puffy dresses, frilly socks, and sparkles than my eyes could comprehend.

The highlight came with “Spider Web” where a web spanning across the entire stage descended. The dancers and Martinez stood in a line with her at the helm and jerkily moved their limbs to look like a spider crawling, combined with the plucked strings sent shivers down my spine.

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MELANIE MARTINEZ (Photo – @samantham_shots

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The magical evening continued with crowd favourite “Battle of the Larynx” and “Contortionist”. So sweet and lulling was the vocals to “Moon Cycle” that I didn’t even comprehend that the giant moon shown in the background, was rolling down a bloody river. This excited a cackle as she moved into next song “Nymphology”, the anthem for all manic pixie dream girls.

“Womb” is the last track on the Portals album, so it seemed the night was ending. However as background imagery showed an egg being fertilised and hatching the creature that is Martinez, there was still the encore to come.

After a brief retreat backstage Martinez returns to excitedly tell the crowd “let’s play some old songs”. Cult favourites “Play Date” and “Show and Tell” had fans screaming the words. “Mad Hatter” a hip hop inspired demonic pop track gladly surprised the crowd. It looked like Martinez and crew also enjoyed grooving along to this one.

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MELANIE MARTINEZ (Photo – @samantham_shots

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By this point Martinez has played nearly an hour and half with hardly any breaks and yet she was still going. “Milk of the Siren” closed the set, where Martinez proudly displayed her signature airy melodic voice. Punctuated by searing sustained top notes one couldn’t ask for a more majestic ending.

Those lucky enough to catch the indie sensation on the Portals tour should feel extremely blessed. As Martinez has told sources following this tour, she plans to take her usual 4 year hiatus to recharge. No wonder tonight’s show was a sell out, with another Melbourne date added last minute. If you couldn’t attend a show, come on the magical journey anyway by listening to Portals.

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MELANIE MARTINEZ (Photo – @samantham_shots

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Check out Samantha Meuleman’s (@samantham_shots) full gallery of this event HERE

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Follow MELANIE MARTINEZ
Website – Instagram – Facebook
TikTok – Twitter

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MELANIE MARTINEZ (Photo – @samantham_shots

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AMNPLIFY – DB