Music

Anna Meredith

Leith Theatre

Miranda Heggie

five stars

IT'S crude, it’s raw, it’s dirty, it’s angry. Yet it’s also invigorating, uplifting and strangely comforting. Is this the new punk? I don’t know, but whatever movement she’s championing, I want to get on board! Anna Meredith’s performance, the headline set of the opening night of this year’s Hidden Door festival, was electrifying. The dark harmonies and syncopated rhythms pulled you right into Meredith’s fascinating sound world - a heady blend of pop and electronica meeting contemporary classical music.

Not only was it wonderful to see the old Leith Theatre reopened and buzzing with people, the venue was superbly apt, with gallery seating still in tact upstairs, but plenty room for dancing downstairs where the stalls would have been. Friday was the first time the theatre had held host to a performance for 25 years; having lain sealed up and empty for so long, you could almost feel the ghosts of those who’d previously troad these boards, and the paint peeling from the ceiling only added to its nostalgic charm. There was nothing nostalgic about Friday night though, Meredith’s innovative composition and intoxicating stage presence clearly at the cutting edge of new music. Her credentials as a serious classical composer are evident, as demonstrated by the sophistication and precision in both the composition and performance. Playing material from her latest album Varmints, which won the 2016 Scottish Album of the Year award, her presence on stage was almost intoxicating as she swept the audience up on exhilarating musical journey.