Scottish singer-songwriter Brooke Combe brought her “A-Game” and lit up the room at Brudenell Social Club Leeds.
The viral star, well known for her northern soul and motown influence, puts a refreshing spin on the big band sound with a fantastic live show.
Dancing At The End Of The World tour had Leeds as its penultimate show, originally meant to be taking place at Project House, then the event suddenly got moved to cult classic The Brudenell Social Club. Having played the smaller room in the venue before, Brooke joked about how she’s “moving up in the world”.
As well as Brooke Combe being a brilliant musical talent, (her voice is like Nina Simone had a long lost daughter from Scotland, with as much style, flair and just divine compassion in the way she sings and plays), Brooke was actually hilarious during her set.
Perfect comic timing allowed her to be really vulnerable on stage, speaking about how in the past the artist had suffered with stage fright and “trying to get through shows as quickly as possible without talking”. It appears Brooke has come on leaps and bounds and confidently stands tall when addressing her crowd, dancing between boasting how lucky and grateful she felt to be performing and touring… to having an in depth discussion about the pies served at Brude, and boldly declaring that they should “get the cheese and onion option off the menu… no-one buys it”.
There was a youthful playfulness when reminiscing on releasing her mega hit “A-Game” by measuring how long ago it was released… ”I’m 26 years old… in October” which is an hilarious comment to make in April.
Brooke Combe may only be 26 – in October – but she’s an old soul, covering Summer Breeze by Isley Brothers with her 6 piece band. A moment for the band as they all looked and sounded incredible: this is clearly a collective of artists who all share the same love for playing live and were brilliant at bouncing off each other’s energy. I think there’s a real talent when it comes to performers who can hold the stage as their own whilst also lifting their band up and Brooke Combe did a perfect job of that.
No stranger to putting a fresh spin on a pre-loved track, (Combe previously released a cover of Yes Sir, I can Boogie) However, with these psychedelic guitar leads and funky bass lines it truly lit a fire on the classic and I cannot stop listening to it now.
With a room sparkling from the giant disco ball in the corner, Brooke looked right at home and parts of the stage blended with what was brought by the artist and what was already in situ. Brooke Combe belonged on that stage and the audience loved her. Kicking the night off with the first track on the album Dancing At The Edge Of The World, This Town, (sounding like something the great Frank Wilson would belt out) the room was buzzing with the soulful tones.
Other tracks of the night included Shaken By The Wind, where Brooke played the tambourine whilst delivering excellent vocals. Miss Me Now also featured and was a firm fan favourite and then the night ended with Are You With Me, which was Brooke Combe’s huge breakout hit from 2021.
You could tell from the confidence in the audience’s singalong that this isn’t the first time many of the attendees had seen Brooke Combe live – there was a party vibe throughout the night and great back and forth between singer and viewers. This show was a masterclass in embracing your roots but also delivering new, elevated performances.
Posting on Instagram, Brooke summed up her time on tour with “Tour’s done, voice is gone, feet are burst – but my heart is full”. We couldn’t have put it better ourselves. Thank you, Brooke Combe and band for a really fun, silly but wonderful night.
I will be watching out for festival slots and future headline tours of this artist.
Photography by Jazz Jennings.
