AMY Shark has been on a rapid ascension since the release of Adore three years ago, which launched her to No.2 in the Triple J Hottest 100.
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Commercial radio subsequently came calling and her debut album Love Monster claimed four ARIA Awards last November, making her arguably Australia's hottest new pop star.
The 33-year-old had previously performed at This That in 2017, but her Thursday night show at NEX to kick-off her regional tour was her headline debut in Newcastle.
Naturally there was a sense of anticipation in the solid, but not quite sold-out crowd. The curtains are often drawn on either side of the stage when some acts fail to move enough tickets at NEX, but for Shark they were flung wide open.
Shark entered the stage - which was dominated by giant "A M Y S H A R K" letters and platforms for her guitarist-keyboardist and drummer to perform - with an Adidas jumper and torn white jeans.
Call it "the Sporty Spice in 2019 look."
You can't fault Shark's stage presence. She's energetic, constantly roaming and her voice delivers the vulnerably that has endeared her to her audience.
The acoustic-driven Psycho provided a nice moment and showcased Shark's range.
However, the distance between her best songs - Adore, I Said Hi, Drive You Mad and Mess Her Up - and the rest is significant.
Some like Leave Us Alone and The Idiot, written about an ex-boyfriend, lacked the production to ignite the audience.
Shark could definitely benefit from more material, but she's only in the early days of her career with one released EP and album. A disappointing omission was her Teenage Dirtbag cover, which has become popular with her fan base.
The performance overcame it's mid-show slump when All Loved Up prompted several punters to straddle their friends' shoulders.
In the encore Shark delivered an impassioned vocal performance on Adore that got spines tingling before, she stopped to chat with the audience one last time.
"I feel like the Shark cult is very strong here in Newcastle," she said. "You're going to go away from here and some people will say they don't like what I do or my music. Well, tell them I said hi."
It was the perfect middle-finger salute and seque into the final and biggest song of the night, I Said Hi, with the crowd booming out the ear-worm chorus throughout NEX.
You suspect the majority of the crowd went home with "tell them all I said hi" stuck in their heads and they didn't mind at all.
Josh Leeson
Josh Leeson is an entertainment and features journalist, specialising in music, at the Newcastle Herald. He first joined the masthead in 2008 after stints at the Namoi Valley Independent and Port Stephens Examiner and has previously covered sport including the Asian Cup, A-League, Surfest, cricket and rugby league.
Josh Leeson is an entertainment and features journalist, specialising in music, at the Newcastle Herald. He first joined the masthead in 2008 after stints at the Namoi Valley Independent and Port Stephens Examiner and has previously covered sport including the Asian Cup, A-League, Surfest, cricket and rugby league.
