Song Spotlight: Alexia Rev's Love's a Dying Art (a night at Bar Lubitsch)

Alexia Rev (moniker for Rebecca Alexia Tobaly) took part in the second WFNM's Almost Acoustic Showcase at Bar Lubitsch. As can be surmised by "second," this is a recent new music series. In the debut night, I had seen most of the curated singers. I knew I was going to love all those singers. This time around, there was only one singer on the list that I had seen before. That fact gave the night a feeling of discovery. Of course, Alexia Rey was one of those newly discovered singers.

Alexia Rev at Bar Lubitsch

Per her Youtube bio, she's Paris born, raised in New York, and now lives in Los Angeles. Talk about taking Horace Greeley seriously (the 19th-century editor once said "Go West, young man"). She describes her music as "anti-genre pop" and "danceable retro-inspired pop."  

What did I notice: before taking to the stage, I saw her giving a little dance as a friend did a recording. She then took to the stage and her friend took seats at the tables that were set-up in front of the stage. Interestingly, there was almost an unwritten rule about those tables. There was a constant rotation out of those seats with close friends of the various singers rotating in and out. 

Alexia Rev at Bar Lubitsch

Her setlist was filled with shoutouts to Paris and New York. I'm going to assume that "Upstate" is a song dedicated to Upstate New York. Do I know that for sure? That interpretation fits into this write-up . . . ha ha. Her song "Let Me Go (don't)" includes the French lyrics, "Ne me touche pas si tu ne comptes pas m'aimer." She also wore a lace headscarf, which immediately had me thinking French. Though she didn't sing any song's off of her debut EP, the title is somewhere in echo park so there is a Los Angeles call out in her music catalog. 

Her set included beautiful dance moves, highlighted by slow and expressive arm movements. There was a ballet artform in those movements. The final song of the set was the beatbox "Tea Time." What was the required pre-song ritual on that tune? A sip of tea. 

Alexia Rev at Bar Lubitsch

The song spotlight goes to her most recent release "Love's a Dying Art." She introduced the song with a, "When you want them to let you go, but you really don't want them to let you go." A reverb tune with imagery of a singer alone in the French countryside and laying open her heart in measured poetic lyrics. 

So forgive me if I fade
I don’t know what’s real or not

Setlist: Upstate, Weekend Getaway, Let Me Go (don't), Love's a Dying Art, WALKING AWAY (Justin Bieber cover), Tea Time.