In the heat of the back room of the Grace Emily, Grace Mensforth (Vocals), Jack Willsmore (Guitar), James Nisbet (Drums), Lara Patzel (Bass Guitar) collectively pour their hearts and souls into delving into Jeff Buckley’s album Grace.

Buckley had only one album to his name when he died, and was to have said; ‘I know I can do better’  leaving an open space for interpreting and delivering his music, and this act gave a wonderfully profound, ethereal interpretation that was deeply moving. 

Intertwining through songs, the show included video and imagery, clips of voice recordings, and guitarist Jack Willsmore delivered poetry written by Jeff Buckley; with little talking and audience interaction from the band, the musicians pushed the focus of Jeff Buckley’s music and his voice to the front of the show. This allowed for the shining talent and ability of the musicians to do the talking, rather than the personalities of the band members themselves.  By doing this, the band delicately tells the story of a musician who believed he was more precious and tender than the world surrounding him.

This is an unassuming act, the musicians all have so much talent and working together they produced a quality show, this was evident by the way they held a captured their audience of all ages throughout their two sets. The 2022 Helpmann Award winner for Outstanding Vocalist Grace Mensforth’s controlled and elegant voice transformed the room; the acoustic renditions were a standout, in particular, Hallelujah where with no prompt, the crowd could not help themselves but to join in on singing along.

The quality and professionalism of these musicians are something that you would expect to see on a bigger stage with a larger capacity – and I will be following to see where these musicians go; this act is what Fringe Festival is about—the surprising gems found in the most unassuming places.    

5/5 Stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Eternal Life at the Grace Emily has one more show on the 2nd of March, and After Hours, produced by Grace Mensforth & Jack Willsmore, will be happening throughout the Fringe Festival at Courtyard at Treasury 1860