BANKS
Northcote Theatre, Melbourne

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American singer/songwriter Jillian Rose Banks aka BANKS returns to Melbourne for her second and final exclusive show tonight presented by ALWAYS LIVE. The intimate performance is a celebration to mark the 10th anniversary of her debut full-length record ‘Goddess.’

The venue fills with a thick layer of hazy smoke before BANKS emerges on stage doused in red lighting to evoke a moody and melodramatic dark pop atmosphere to match the tone of the record. Even though it’s been over a decade, she pulls us right back in to relive the emotions of the album with her sultry vocals, confidence and strong feminine power.

The stage setup is minimal with nothing but a piano and a microphone and BANKS is dressed in black from head to toe with a veil over her face as she performs her opening track ‘Alibi,’ that’s met with screams from excited fans in the crowd singing at the top of their lungs.

“I was really excited for tonight, to be here. This is kind of the last show in this little mini celebration 10-year anniversary tour of ‘Goddess’. I just wanted to say from the bottom of my heart, truly I am so grateful for every single person who has ever connected to my music – ‘Goddess changed my life and you guys changed my life,’ says BANKS.

“There’s a song on ‘Goddess’ that I never performed because I thought that I was too vulnerable or something but I’m going to play it tonight,’ she continues as she moves over to the grand piano for the heartfelt track ‘Someone New.’

She continues at the piano for ‘Drowning’ and then seductively moves across it toward the front of the stage as the electronic beat kicks in and she lays downs some impressive dance moves to command our attention.

The set isn’t a complete live performance of her entire debut album but includes hits such as ‘Waiting Game,’ ‘Beggin For Thread,’ and ‘This Is What It Feels Like.’ She also surprises fans with a couple of the songs that were on the deluxe version of the beloved record like ‘Bedroom Wall’ and ‘Before I Ever Met You.’

As we reminisce the tracks that made us fall in love with BANKS a decade ago, she’s already begun her next era with her upcoming fifth album ‘Off With Her Head,’ due out in February 2025. It’s only fitting that she includes two new tracks including ‘Best Friends’ and ‘I Hate Your Ex-Girlfriend’ which serves as the final track served up for us to get us excited for her next chapter in her ever-evolving music career.

Words by Michael Prebeg

Photo by Valerie Lee