As the lights dim, there is a crackle of energy that courses through the crowd. Eliza & The Delusionals take the stage and within seconds emit a burst of energy and sound that emanates throughout the venue. Eliza Klatt’s vocals mixed with Kurt Skuse and Ruby Lee on the guitar and bass had the entire audience under a spell during their performance on June 5.
The popular Australian band returned to the Cleveland area at Mahall’s on their headline tour accompanied by their opener, Grace Gardner. When the group last played in Cleveland, it opened for The Front Bottoms and their experience was much different. “We’re the last band to play, so after all of the adrenaline we have to go and leave… when you’re a support band, you can finish your set and then enjoy their set and have a night out almost,” Skuse explained.
When Eliza & The Delusionals first played in Cleveland, many people in the crowd were not originally at the show for them. However, the band saw this as an opportunity to grow. “Trying to play in front of their crowd and win people over and then coming back to the same cities you played in; it’s cool to see how many people come back to your show,” Skuse said. Not only has the group changed and grown but its stage presence is different compared to the last tour. Each of the members seemed more comfortable on stage and had a deeper confidence and connection to the crowd.
However, Skuse gets pre-show jitters “every single night” before going on stage and is fearful that there could be a night where no one comes to a show. Lee and Klatt agreed, mentioning that some of the anxiety stems from “worrying that something is going to go wrong” with the equipment. At Mahall’s, the performers never showed signs of fear or worry and instead looked like they were meant to be there performing the incredible set. The band is very close and Klatt says “it’s like a relationship,” which fueled their chemistry on stage and made for a dynamic performance.
Mahall’s is a more intimate venue, which allowed the group to talk with the audience and have fun as opposed to fitting their set into a smaller time frame. The group has enjoyed each venue they visited so far on the tour, with Lee noting that “we’ve been privileged” to experience each venue. Klatt mentioned that “hopefully the next time we play [in Cleveland] we get to play with some Cleveland bands” to experience the music scene in the area.
As the band members had a chance to speak with the audience and see their reactions to songs, many people had their favorites and were excited to hear particular tracks. The members of Eliza & The Delusionals write all of their songs and Skuse mentioned “there are so many tiers” to the writing process. At first, the process can make it feel like “I think I’m going to quit the band,” but as a song comes together, Skuse, Lee and Klatt all have hope again. Klatt explained that “you have to write ten bad ideas before one decent one comes out.”
When asked about the possibility of new songs in the future, Klatt confirmed that the band is “planning a new release early next year” and they “have been writing” new music. Skuse even joked that they hoped for “general world domination.” With their upbeat and catchy songs, along with charismatic and skillful performances, Eliza & The Delusionals are well on their way to achieve greater success and perhaps eventual world domination.
