Christina Perri, O2 Shepherd's Bush Empire - review

The pop balladeer from Philadelphia was a struggling songwriter when Jar of Hearts, her prickly response to a former lover's renewed interest, became a US sensation. It's since spent 33 weeks on the UK chart.

Her task at Shepherd's Bush was, of course, to keep the hand-holding couples attentive until the hit.

A jaunty organist, hairy drummer and Perri's confident strumming assured them this was a real band. The amiable Bang Bang Bang suggested she might even have been exposed to Britpop in her early years.

Yet for a girl with dozens of tattoos - most hidden away - she was a bit too poised to play at being a rock singer. She was also afflicted with the sort of bright-eyed, perky persona you might expect to find on the US equivalent of The One Show. "This is so bananas," she said at the first sign of a few screams. Soon enough it was also "crazy", "awesome" and even "rad". At one point, the Pollyannaish Perri presented a fan with a limp tulip from the forlorn stage decoration.

The music was diverting enough, though. Daydream was pleasant if pedestrian and Distance made up for its absence of any genuine emotional drama with a decent tune. Her Twilight soundtrack effort A Thousand Years hinted at an almost operatic prowess.

Perri's gushing about "so much fun" actually started to ring true after a while. My Eyes was a shivery piano ballad warmed up by her honeyed vocals and sudden, blaring rock riffs; a cover of Roy Orbison's Crying featured impressive caterwauling; and Crazy took a bizarre mariachi direction.

There were some self-pitying lyrics but at least Perri wasn't predictable. The creepy vibrato guitar and lurching rhythms on Mine were a delight and might have enlivened that Twilight film.

The encore was dominated by a solo performance of Jar of Hearts and Perri was happy to admit that the song "completely changed my life". It was a signature anthem with real emotional heft and was met with a spontaneous singalong.

It was certainly the standout moment, though Christina Perri can surely expect to be more than a one-hit wonder.

Christina Perri
O2 Shepherd's Bush Empire
Shepherd's Bush Green, W12 8TT