As Ruby Fields stepped onto the stage, the couple in front of my friend and I decided it would be the perfect moment to start passionately making out. We found a new spot in the crowd only to later realise it was next to the kind of people that yell out “shoey” at a gig. Avoiding dickheads in a Newcastle crowd is near impossible.
I’ve only ever seen Ruby Fields at a festival, so was interested to see her in a smaller, more intimate venue. It’s a shame that sound issues held her back. It was clear though, that Ruby really cared about putting on a good show. Rather than ignoring the sound mishaps, she acknowledged them, stopping and starting throughout the set to perform the songs the way she wanted them to be heard.
“You all paid for your tickets and I want you to have a good time,” said Ruby, frustratingly playing around with her guitar while commenting on the lack of sound. Despite the pressure that sound issues place on artists, usually, the crowd are understanding enough to know it’s out of their control. The packed room at Newcastle Hotel were enjoying themselves, despite Ruby’s feeling of guilt that she wasn’t putting on a good show. But enough about the sound mishaps, the night shouldn’t be defined by that.
The “average chick that started busking at the age of 13” as she describes in her Facebook bio, had the sold-out crowd celebrating this “averageness”, yelling lyrics like “Oi, pass us the bug spray, would ya?”. This ‘averageness’ is just scraping the surface. Ruby’s lyrics reveal her vulnerable nature, pairing powerful instrumentation with an emotional punch, “And I’ll play to heaps of crowds but I’m anxious, I’m a coward”.
Playing her Like A Version, The Church’s ‘The Unguarded Moment’ had the crowd go wild.
From there were two remaining songs ‘P Plates’ and of course, #9 in the 2018 Hottest 100, ‘Dinosaurs’, which ended with a whole lot of crowd surfing. Playing to another sold-out crowd at the same venue, Newcastle Hotel, tonight, I hope Ruby Fields knows that she did, and will again, put on a great show.
Review – Brooke Tunbridge