Sasha Grey, the former adult film star-turned-musician, took to the stage a simple combination of a leather jacket, a tank top, and jeans. It was nothing fancy. But the moment she appeared, her name immediately echoed inside Hyve in Taguig.
The 26-year-old was in the country as part of her first "Here I Am Tour," which will take her all over Australia and Asia.
Grey, whose real name is Marina Ann Hantzis, kicked off her almost two hour set with her debut single, "Heat of the Night" --a party track collaboration with producer Jayceeoh.
"I want to see you f****** dance!" she shouted to the crowd, who was more than satisfied to just whip out their smartphones and take a snap of Grey instead of actually dancing.
It was understandable, though, considering where she came from. At a tender age of 18, Grey became one of the best known faces of the porn industry. She starred in around 300 adult films, before announcing her retirement three years later.
She claimed that she wanted to pursue more fulfilling projects, which included stints as a Hollywood actress and a novelist. She also managed to carve out a career as a musician and DJ by joining several experimental groups such as American band aTelecine.
On Thursday, Grey's musical side took center stage. She threw together a dizzying mix of deep house tracks, littered with club anthems such as a remix of Disclosure's "Latch" and Dirty South and Alesso's "City Of Dreams."
Her choice of songs for the night had more misses than hits, though. It can be difficult to keep a crowd dancing non-stop throughout for more than an hour, let alone one that was seemingly more interested in ogling her.
But the night was far from not having a few highs. One of the more notable ones was when she threw in a fist-pumping combination of Empire of the Sun's "Alive" and a remix of Fatboy Slim and Riva Starr's "Eat Sleep Rave Repeat."
The crowd, who was barely moving at that point, suddenly burst into life backed with their familiarity with the lyrics. Grey should have taken advantage of the local crowd's penchant for singing along, throwing in more mainstream tracks that could have served to kill off many of the night's lulls.
I also think that her set could have benefited with paying more attention to her audience. Aside from her sporadic use of a fog machine, confetti, and throwing a few high fives upfront, there was a glaring disconnect between her fans and the elevated booth. Her music also did not seem to react to the underwhelming amount of dancing.
However, the night's lowest point could not be pinned on Grey. It was when some members of the crowd began shouting: "take if off, take it off."
I thought it to be disrespectful, even if it was said in jest, as it threatens to take away a lot of what Grey has done in the past few years --make a name for herself outside the infamous industry she decided to leave back in 2009.
Regardless, Grey ended her set with a smile and Sick Individuals' explosive club edit of Icona Pop's "I Love It." It was greeted with loud cheers, and her name again slowly erupted from the sizeable Thursday night crowd.
Judging from the reaction, it was safe to say that everyone felt satisfied with how the night went.
Only time will tell, however, if she has enough talent to emerge from the crowded EDM scene, or if fans can look past her previous career to take her music seriously.
source: www.abs-cbnnews.com
