Live review: Alice Merton has ‘Visions’ at Amber’s

On 18 March, Alice Merton took to the stage at Amber’s on the UK leg of her Visions tour. Her latest album of the same name, is a fierce exploration into the singer's creativity and storytelling capability. Merton's melodic indie-alt tracks have landed her international success with one of her first songs, ‘No Roots’, charting in the top ten in several European countries upon its release back in 2017.

The underground venue had the feel of a secret show providing an intimate experience for a few eager fans to hear their favourite singer live. Opening for her was Eaves Wilder, a London-based singer who played tracks off of her debut album Little Miss Sunshine. The room swayed along to her dreamy, indie-alt/rock as her soft voice and punchy melodies carried through.

Credit: Caitlin Embradura @ The Mancunion

Merton appeared not long after, donning an orange leather outfit with a central marigold flower and matching orange shades. This flower is particularly significant to Visions as the album cover is full of them and they lend their name to the final track of the album. A harsh orange lamp lit up the stage as the singer began her set with ‘Coasting’, starting sat at a piano covered in fake grass and marigolds before making her way over to the standing mic. This song deals with the feeling that life is passing you by, its cosiness aided by warmth from the stage light.

Credit: Caitlin Embradura @ The Mancunion

Suddenly, harsh drums kicked in for the next track ‘Visions’, as Merton’s voice radiated with confidence. Bass guitar in hand, ‘Mirage’ and ‘Boogie Man’ followed as the crowd clapped along to the songs' snappy hooks. The next song was ‘Vertigo’, the lead single from her sophomore album S.I.D.E.S. It's a powerful anthem of raw emotion about losing control over your mind.

After ‘Treasure Island’, there was a medley of three songs; ‘Joyriding’ from the latest album, ‘how well do you know your feelings?’ from her 2024 EP Heron, and ‘Homesick’ from her debut album MINT. The songs meshed well together; ending on ‘Homesick’ was genius with its delicate lyricism standing out in the mix.

Credit: Caitlin Embradura @ The Mancunion

Next came the audience choice where Merton asked the crowd to shout out songs and played the one that received the most cheers. The outcome of this was ‘Why So Serious’ from MINT, which has had a slight resurgence in popularity after a stripped down version of the song was featured in an episode of Money Heist back in 2021. 

The singer returned to Visions, playing ‘Willow Trees in Tokyo’, choosing to include audience participation for the chorus: half the crowd hummed along to the instrumental while the other half dealt with the trickier lyrics. It was a sentimental moment, successfully made by a more than willing audience. ‘Ignorance is Bliss’ was next and despite not being an easy song to sing, Merton’s voice seemed effortless, hitting difficult notes with masterful control. Merton wrote for all the songs on this album, though it’s surprising to see Dan Smith of Bastille credited on a few of her songs including this one. Their partnership has history with Merton opening for Bastille on the American and European leg of the band's ‘Give Me The Future’ tour in 2022. 

‘Cruel Intentions’ is another up-beat song, where Merton sings about lashing out at her partner for being unreasonable and emotionally unavailable. The high energy continued during ‘Jane Street’ with the singer returning to her piano, projecting her voice in such a way that the power in her words didn't feel lost.

Credit: Caitlin Embradura @ The Mancunion

The topic of this song is unconventional as she compares herself to a US trading firm – what she calls a “Silicon Valley utopia” – not wanting her or her music to be used as a formula. It's a very refreshing anti-AI rhetoric with the singer praising the crowd at one point for coming along to support real, human made music. Merton’s performance showed that she is neither formulaic nor predictable, choosing next to play a firm favourite from the MINT era: 'I Don't Hold a Grudge'. Merton has successfully managed to carve out a distinct sound for every song on Visions, many of which have relevant themes such as 'Landline', a song about re-kindling meaningful connections with loved ones in a world of instant technological gratification.

The final song of the night was ‘Marigold’, a track about a new, uncertain beginning that she is ready to take on head first. The singer said she drew inspiration from the significance of the flower in both Mexican and Indian cultures, mentioned in the song in the lines "We'll lie under Mexican skies / And we'll lie lie under Indian skies". A sweet and hopeful ending to both the album and show.

But it wasn’t the real ending, of course, as Merton couldn’t leave without playing her hit ‘No Roots’ which she came back on to do as an encore. The elated audience sang and cheered along to the song's catchy, repetitive hook. 'No Roots' is about Merton's nomadic upbringing and how she has never really felt she has had a place to call home. 

While Manchester may not be home for Alice Merton, those in attendance sure did treat her like it was.

Credit: Caitlin Embradura @ The Mancunion

https://open.spotify.com/album/4nTsEty8r2mW08irGgcEka?si=JdJ9SpDwSQifzjwzHP95eQ