It’s Brighton Fringe month and I’m sat in darkness, at The Ironworks Studios, awaiting Paul Diello, and his Kate Bush Cornucopia. There’s an electric piano upstage, 3 mics downstage, with red ballet shoes dangling from one microphone. The lighting is minimalist, suddenly the sound of Kate Bush songs in strings plays out while people find their seats. I feel like I’m at a wedding.
Diello and his two backing singers walk onstage to the beats of ‘King of the Mountain’, all three dressed in black with Diello wearing a top hat and veil, giving gothic bride sass. King of the Mountain; a strong choice of opener to set the mood, and all three performers nailed it. A poppier, R’n’B version of ‘Hounds of Love’ follows, then it’s lights down as an archive interview with Kate Bush is projected onto the screen. Diello picks up his ukelele for another cover making a joke about slippery blouses, then I realise I’m also wearing a slippery blouse, well, ‘when in Kate Bush’s Cornucopia…..’
He gives us a slower tempo ‘Babooshka’ with trip hop style beats, as images of Kate fade in and out on the screen behind. It’s lovely to hear personal stories from Diello, of his Kate Bush awakening via his step dad’s record collection. That’s what makes these nights that he puts together so special, the emotional connection and sharing of memories. ‘The Man With the Child in His Eyes’ is exceptionally performed by everyone in the band, the soul in Diello’s voice is magnetic. One of the backing singers, Joanne, performs a solo rendition of ‘Unbelieveable’, and she manages to encapsulate Kate but still making it her own, you could see the audience transfixed.
Tonight feels like a seance; singing Kate’s songs, celebrating her music, feels as if we’re inviting her spirit and energy in the room. It feels joyous and hopeful, I feel liberated. There’s a fun quiz, a break, then more Kate video projections easing us into the second half of the Cornucopia. Our three hosts enter the stage in a triangle of red crepe, breaking out into a 1920’s swing style jazzy version of ‘Wuthering Heights’. Diello talks to us all about what it was like being at the Before the Dawn concerts, and how imaginative the production design was. Much of the audience were there, apart from me; seething with envy in a slippery blouse in the front row.
He begins a beautiful piano solo of ‘Hello Earth’, the band actually learnt the original Georgian folk version, which goes to show how much effort and passion is put into these celebratory events. As the evening winds down, a version of ‘Top of the City’ borders into flamenco, and ‘Running Up That Hill’ is given a stripped back, acoustic performance. Almost exactly, right at the end, my favourite Kate Bush song arrives – ‘This Woman’s Work’, a song that always moves me to tears, and with Paul Diello’s voice, I’m almost balling. The songs of Kate Bush evoke feeling and meaning, they go deep and they resonate. Diello has a way of serving the music of iconic storytellers, such as Kate, channelling his emotion and memories into something we can all relate to. He does this in a fitting intimate venue that still has enough room to wave a chiffon scarf in.
Paul Diello will be launching his album at The Ironworks Studios on 7th September, keep checking his Instagram here for when tickets go on sale
Written by Jo Overfield
Keep up to date with all new content on Joyzine via
Facebook | Bluesky | Instagram | Threads | Mailing List