Bat for Lashes leaves much of the audience in awe

Natasha Khan, aka Bat for Lashes, is, in my opinion, one of the most talented, and good looking, women in music today.

Having released two albums, 'Fur and Gold' in 2006, and 'Two Suns' earlier this year, both to high critical acclaim, her appearance at this year's festival was one of the most highly anticipated by attendees.

Khan has always been regarded highly by many, including Radiohead who specially requested for her to open for them on their tour last year. With praise from likes of Radiohead, it's clear that she's a talent, but she doesn't need the praise to show it.

Her debut broke into the top 50 here in the UK, and 'Two Suns' reached an incredible 5th in the charts after it's release, and it's definitely the latter that's creating a stir.

I recently watched the Live with Jimmy Kimmel show whilst in a Singapore hotel, and it's clear that she's starting to become a big deal in the US, and even more so in this country.

She's very much different to the recent wave of popular female artists that are around such as Little Boots and Florence and the Machine, and her work has been compared to the likes of PJ Harvey and Bjork.

Live, Bat for Lashes have also been highly praised, and at the moment Khan's backing band also features former Ash guitarist Charlotte Hatherly, solo artist Ben Christopher, and New Young Pony Club drummer Sarah Jones.

Her set on the Other Stage at this year's festival lived up to the hype and praise, and attracted a huge number of attendees to the Other Stage.

Playing a mix of songs from both albums, highlights of the set included 'Prescilla' and latest singles 'Pearls Dream' and 'Daniel'.

Dressed in a typically flamboyant manner, continuing the trend of the previous act lead singer, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' Karen O, Khan herself was absolutlely faultless, and her voice was simply incredible, sounding excellent on what had been dissapointing soundsystem all weekend.

She left much of the audience in awe, and after each song she and the band were met with huge cheers and applause. I overheard several audience members claim that she was the best act that they've ever seen, and I'd struggle to find a very good argument against that claim.

Previously I hadn't really got into Bat for Lashes, and they proved to be one the suprises of my weekend, converting me instantly into a fan.

With festival appearances at Latitude and Bestival coming up in July and September, followed by a UK tour in October with the excellent Yeasayer, this year is definitely the year to catch Bat for Lashes, she definitely lives up to the hype.

Latest Updates