Nilüfer Yanya & Lutalo at Brooklyn Steel [Photos]
Photos by Eleanor PetryEarlier this week, English singer-songwriter Nilüfer Yanya took the stage at Brooklyn Steel in New York City, delivering a career-spanning set that included tracks like “Heavyweight Champion of the Year” and “the dealer.” Last month, Yanya released My Method Actor, one of the best records of her career (and the year) so far.
Yanya been showing her teeth since 2019, when she dropped Miss Universe and established herself as one of the best up-and-coming alternative artists. My Method Actor is her strongest document yet, as songs like “Method Actor,” “Mutations” and “Call it Love” are adventurous and poppy indie cuts that never sit still. On “Made Out of Memory,” a tune deeply textured by synthesizers that wouldn’t sound out of place in a 1980s coming-of-age movie ballad, Yanya takes the sorrow of the keys and plugs it into a cavernous, brooding moodboard. “I know you’re not afraid of nothing, I guess we’re all afraid of something,” she laments. “So sharpen your blade and cut me wide, the rest goes up in flames.” “Made Out of Memory” doesn’t have a climax; instead, the arrangement swirls and simmers, guided by a guitar cushioned by an instrument that sounds as delicate as a pedal steel. It’s a striking exclamation point to a record that’s allergic to run-on sentences.
Check out some shots from Nilüfer Yanya and Lutalo’s Brooklyn Steel sets, captured by Eleanor Petry, below.
Lutalo
Nilüfer Yanya
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