Destination Country have been putting on a ‘Live In Your Living Room’ concert every Thursday. The last occurred last week with their first ever British guest – Jess Thristan. Read Madeline Christy’s review of the set here.
For many fans in the country community, lockdown has meant no C2C festival, cancelled tickets, socialising and cancelled camping plans for Black Deer festival. But most importantly, lockdown has put a padlock on country artists’ live performances and their income. Many artists have pulled album releases forward and turned to online live performances to support the genre and its large fanbase.
Last week, Yorkshire star Jess Thristan partnered with Destination Country to deliver one of the most intimate shows, from her living room to yours. While rocking some Destination Country merch (which can be found here) the singer opened with ‘Refund’; a comedic story of wanting wasted time back from a bad relationship. As many active fans were applauding Thristan via emoji on Stageit’s live chat as she sang ‘when it comes to love I keep buying damaged goods’, her ‘stage’ presence made me forget that I was watching her on a Thursday night from my Essex sofa.
As Thristan transitioned into her next song ‘Ruined’ I found myself asking “was Thristan letting me read her diary, or had she been reading mine?” The vulnerability of not only the song but of the environment of the show captured the most intricate depiction of a shattering heartbreak, and felt like something myself and other fans could relate to.
Returning to her humble beginnings, Thristan revisited her 2019 release ‘The Old Me’. As she sang with closed eyes – lost in the past, Thristan’s guitar rang out warm and full of body. Normally, in a live setting, views from the bar can be too far to appreciate the artistry of Thristan’s guitar skills, but the live stream allowed everyone a front row seat to her campfire guitarist likeability.
Before breaking into ‘Your Turn’ a tale of coming of age, which Thristan co-wrote with Nick Wilson, the artist hinted at another future collaboration with the acoustic pop singer. We’ll be sure to keep our ears open! However, to hold us eager country fans over, the Yorkshire sweetheart debuted a new song entitled ‘The Act’ which Thristan wrote via Zoom with Demi Marriner. ‘They’re lining up for your act but I won’t fall for that’ is certified served sass. The song’s fun and upbeat texture is sure to make back garden summers brighter.
As many of us continue to remain indoors, it can be easy to fall into the rabbit hole whirlpool of Instagram and glamorous YouTubers, however in ‘Time Of Our Lives’ Thristan delivered the ultimate anti-social media anthem. ‘Picture with a view but the backdrops fake’ highlights the ‘live in the moment’ message that is much needed. To close the stream, we listened to Thristan turn the tables on post-breakups with the always lively ‘Like A Guy Would’. The show proved, not only is it still possible to support your favourite artists from the comfort of your own home, but you can still nab a front row seat without having to queue for doors open.
