Review: Suzanne Vega’s Flying With Angels Tour 2026
by Metropol | September 10, 2026 1:08 pm
For Metropol’s Murray Dempsey, singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega is a firm favourite. He reviews her Flying with Angels Tour at the James Hay Theatre on 9 September 2026.
Suzanne Vega has been a firm favourite of mine since Solitude Standing landed in 1987. There was something different about her even then. She didn’t just sing songs; she told stories, often through someone else’s eyes, with that distinctive, almost spoken delivery that somehow made them feel even more personal. So yes, I went into this concert with expectations. High ones.
Seeing an artist you’ve admired for nearly four decades can be dangerous. Sometimes nostalgia is considerably kinder than the live show. Thankfully, Suzanne Vega did not disappoint. Not even close.
From the opening notes of Marlene on the Wall, this was a masterclass in how to put on a show without appearing to be trying too hard. Professional and polished, certainly, but wonderfully calm and intimate. At times it felt less like a concert and more like Suzanne had invited a few hundred of us into her lounge for the evening. That was its strength.
There was no musical clutter. Long-time guitarist Gerry Leonard was superb, using loops, effects and guitar synths to create far more sound than one person reasonably should. Stephanie Winters on cello was equally impressive, bringing warmth, drama and another dimension to songs I thought I knew inside out.
The stripped-back trio allowed Vega’s voice, lyrics and storytelling to take centre stage. Her voice remains remarkably intact, distinctive, assured and seemingly untouched by the passing years.
The set moved effortlessly across her career: The Queen and the Soldier, Left of Centre, Luka and, inevitably, Tom’s Diner, alongside material from her new album Flying with Angels.
Chambermaid cleverly flips the perspective of a character in Bob Dylan’s I Want You, allowing the woman to tell her side of the story. Speakers’ Corner carries a sharper edge, a commentary on our political times. Then there were Gypsy and In Liverpool, musical stories of young love, and love lost. Vega’s introductions and the stories behind the songs added another layer entirely. You weren’t simply hearing familiar songs again; you were hearing why they mattered, and that made them land differently. Here was another pleasant surprise.
With artists who have been around this long, the new songs can sometimes become the bit of the concert everyone politely sits through while waiting for the next hit. Not here.
The new material genuinely held its own. There wasn’t a weak song in the set, and there was no noticeable dip in attention when Vega moved away from the familiar favourites. Even a rendition of Lou Reed’s Walk on the Wild Side fitted naturally into the evening. Between songs, she was gracious, dryly funny and refreshingly natural and authentic. The stories, some amusing, some deeply personal, gave context to the music and drew the audience further into the world behind each song. Perhaps that was what impressed me most. There was no desperate attempt to make the evening bigger, louder or flashier than it needed to be.
Suzanne trusted the songs. Classy, intelligent and beautifully understated, this was a masterclass from an artist who knows exactly who she is. For a Suzanne Vega fan, it was everything you could have hoped for. For anyone wanting to see a musician still completely in command of her craft, it was a reminder that great live music doesn’t need fireworks, dancers or a wall of sound.
Sometimes three musicians, great songs and a lifetime of stories are more than enough.
Not to be missed.
Source URL: https://metropol.co.nz/review-suzanne-vegas-flying-with-angels-tour-2026/