Review by Leo Metzker

If you happen to be leaving the Sydney Eye Hospital on a Wednesday night after an annual retinoscopy, cross to the other side of Macquarie Street, take a blurred right, an unfocused left, forward eight paces, a right and then a sharp left into St. Stephen’s Uniting Church. The sound of jazz will envelope your entry. Last Wednesday, this sonic greeting was extended by the Indigo Collective, the tight-knit trio composed of vocalist Angelina Pona, guitarist Ruby Firmstone and double bassist Sabine Tapia. Positioned a street from their conservatorium of origin, the young group sauntered through originals composed by each band member. Contemplative lyrics wrapped in warm, neoteric harmonies perfectly supplemented the reverence of the space. Angelina’s voice, precociously resonant and nuanced, melted through the poignant strums of Ruby and Sabine’s consummate phalanges. The collective, an ultimate embodiment of female musical excellence under the blue spotlight of the SIMA 2025 Sydney International Women’s Jazz Festival.

INDIGO COLLECTIVE

Following a mass dispense of lubricant optical drops at intermission, the public’s vision sharpened to the image of Leah Berry and her quartet at the ready. BAM! The swing was on. Amidst a feat of impeccable vocal control, Leah crafted the band’s dynamics with the wave of her hand. The top row of their Snellen chart spelled the letters, B E T T Y C A R T E R. With the finesse of an ophthalmologist, Leah directed the audience’s gaze past her right ear to the fingers of pianist, Hugh Barrett. From under them poured a magical gloss of chordal theatrics, his expertise intravitreally injected into the keys. Flipping gaze across to her left ear, Jacob Graham came into focus. The phonics narrowed. With his double bass in a headlock, Jacob’s finger pulp transfigured the metallic strings into a vitreous fluid. Soon, another lens dropped into the phoropter. Eyeballs accommodated onto Tim Geldens. His kick drum punched like an air puff tonometer. Suddenly, the chorus floated back in front of the retina. Leah’s arm ascended. A crescendo swelled. Focus sharpened. Her fist clenched. The slit lamp extinguished. Applause detonated through the pews. Never had an ophthalmoscopy swung so hard.