Jenny Lewis at Islington Assembly Hall

Jenny Lewis
Alessi's Ark
Islington Assembly Hall, 5 September 2014

I've seen Alessi's Ark so many times but always in small venues, so it's strange to see her on a relatively big stage playing support to Jenny Lewis tonight. Dressed in a striking embroidered green silk outfit, she seems to have finally settled on a two-piece backing band, who I last saw her play with last year, and they sound well-rehearsed and comfortable with each other. Alessi's had bigger bands in the past but I've always felt they overwhelmed her but playing as part of a trio suits her sound perfectly.

Unfortunately though Alessi was met with the typical bored reaction that many support acts get and the talking during the more quiet songs was quite distracting, I have no idea how it felt for her on stage. The guy next to me didn't even glance at the band once while they were on stage, instead incessantly scrolling through Facebook and then put his phone away as soon as they left the stage, as if he was making some inane, childish protest at having to listen to a mere 30 minutes of a band he didn't know before Jenny Lewis arrived. I don't think I realised just how obnoxious some people could be during support acts.

Alessi's Ark

Still, Alessi and her band gamely struggled through and sounded as lovely as ever I thought. Starting off with the lilting French lyrics of Sans Balance, she mainly showcased her last record The Still Life, with Tin Smithing (which closed the set) and The Rain sounding particularly good. It was also nice to hear her play Woman - from her debut album Songs From The Treehouse - one more time, as that album will always be something special to me. There was only one song I didn't recognise and I have no idea if it was a cover or a new song, but it was a more punky, rocking number than Alessi usually plays and sounded really great. If this is the direction of her next album it should certainly be interesting. But whatever she does, Alessi's Ark is always worth checking out.

As we watched the stage being set up after Alessi left, it was easy to feel the excitement in the room, as rainbows and stars and clouds were unveiled, covering keyboards and hanging behind drumkits. Later Jenny jokingly said it looks like My Little Pony, but it is the signature look of her new album, The Voyager: her take on a Gram Parsons Nudie suit, which she wears on the memorable cover. The colourful look actually accurately portrays the music within: sunny pop, bursting with stories and good feelings. It's bizarre to think it was born out of writer's block that was brought on by Lewis's own depression. When she finally takes to the stage with a huge smile, you would never imagine there was any darkness in there, although Lewis still manages to have an edge that puts her above most pop acts.

The new album is certainly her most polished poppy affair so far but Lewis performs it all like a true rock star, which is what elevates the show to something special. The album also seems to pick up where the very last Rilo Kiley album, Under The Blacklight, left off so it makes sense that she kicks things off with Silver Lining from that record. I've seen Jenny perform solo a few times (as well as with Rilo Kiley a couple of times) but I don't think I've ever heard her play Rilo Kiley songs live before in her own shows. Maybe this is the true sign that Rilo Kiley is well and truly finished: she finally feels she doesn't have to save playing those songs for when the band reunites. There's actually quite a few Rilo Kiley songs tonight too: a couple from The Execution Of Things (A Better Son/Daughter and With Arms Outstretched), one from More Adventurous (A Man/Me/Then Jim) and another from Under The Blacklight (The Moneymaker). The earlier Rilo songs have loyal fans singing along in a rousing chorus which is definitely uplifting and The Moneymaker has a sexy swagger that suits Lewis down to the ground.

Lewis herself just looks damn cool. Wearing a long purple kimono over white trousers and vest and

of course those long red tresses of hers, she dances and sways and stomps around the stage, never afraid to make eye contact with the audience or give them a huge, beaming smile. All the time she looks like she is having an absolute ball, frequently climbing over speakers to get closer to the fans so she can sing to them directly, and then jumping up on the box at the front of the stage like some cool rock & roll leader. She is an absolutely natural performer and it almost seems like being out on her own for the first time has freed her. When I last saw her out with Jenny & Johnny, her band with boyfriend Johnathan Rice, there was no doubt she was holding back this part of her, and even in previous solo shows, with the likes of Rice and the Watson Twins as part of the show, she always was generous to her fellow musicians. Not that her new band isn't given a chance to shine: she obviously has loads of chemistry with them and it's also extremely cool to see so many awesome women musicians on stage with her.

Aside from a couple of tracks from each of her previous solo albums - in particular the rousing country of Rise Up With Fists!! and an incredibly smoking The Next Messiah, which turns into a cool bluesy jam and is easily one of the show's highlights - tonight is really a showcase for her new acclaimed album and it all sounds fantastic. My favourites have to be the great storytelling in Late Bloomer and the fun, sunny feel of Aloha & The Three Johns, which she prefaces with an amusing story about her band going to rest up in Hawaii and seeing a man on the beach serenely peeing into his own mouth "in a beautiful arc of urine". Sadly, she tells us, she couldn't fit that into the song's lyrics.

The encore sees her band gathered around a single microphone behind her singing backing vocals as she plays Acid Tongue on acoustic guitar, proving she could easily do an acoustic show if she wanted to. But Jenny Lewis is really a pop star, albeit an alternative indie goddess one. She's the kind of pop star we really need but only a few truly appreciate. And she goes on to prove that with her final song of the night, the classic pop of She's Not Me, complete with its groovy riff and aching singalong chorus. Jenny Lewis is without a doubt one of a kind.