Calm, Jessie Gordon and Mark Turner
Moana Hall, 30 January 2023

Sitting down to Calm was the perfect way to finish the day. This continuous, hour-long song cycle asks nothing but for us to sit quietly and absorb the music. It felt like a much needed, extended exhale.

Moana Hall is a perfect venue choice – big windows that let in the day’s fading light, a wooden floor which occasionally sends up subtle tangs of wear and polish, plus high ceilings that carry the sound.

Like any musical hosts worth their salt, Jessie Gordon and Mark Turner are on a Persian carpet. Surrounding them are not only instruments, but pedals, recording gear, vines, greenery and a well-loved notebook. With naked bulbs on stands it feels like we’re somewhere between a loungeroom and a tiny country church.

Mark Turner plays guitar, keys and sax while Jessie Gordon takes on the bulk of the vocals. Using live loops, the pair feed samples back on themselves and add further vocals and instrumentation over the top. This creates warm backing vocals and interesting effects, giving a lushness to the music beyond two voices and an instrument.

The calmly joyful music washes over, under, around and through, like a cleansing breeze to the soul.

The calmly joyful music washes over, under, around and through, like a cleansing breeze to the soul. While they often sing together, Gordon takes the bulk of the singing, a warm and glorious voice riding or caressing Turner’s crisp and engaging melodies. Her hands – featuring two large and stunning rings – move softly as her vocals expand and contract. Together they are gentle guides across a musical ocean drawing from many styles.

Musically it’s a mix of original material, much improvisation and the odd familiar refrain. As they never stop, the different pieces effortlessly fit and fold into each other. They pitch the volume perfectly so that when the two voices climbed to a crescendo it was quite startling.

There are two undeniable highlights. The first a gently bluesy song featuring Turner knocking on his guitar like a metronome (a motif which returned throughout the show) and incorporating the gentle much-loved refrain “always take the weather with you”.

“Take me to your altar……bring me to my knees.” As some of the last vocal lines in the show, they were two of the most stunning, and frankly quite breathtakingly devastating.

Like the artists hoped, Calm offers an hour of peace, musical bathing and connectivity – with music and yourself, not your phone. The bonus is that Calm is also uniquely beautiful and life affirming.

Calm continues at Moana Hall until 1 February 2023, as part of Fringe World.

Pictured top: Jessie Gordon and Mark Turner are gentle guides across a musical ocean drawing from many styles. Photo: Josh Wells Photography