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Full house for Headingley’s Cafe Lento gig featuring Ellie Coast and Dave Pilla.
FRIDAY night saw Cafe Lento on North Lane in Headingley host one of its live gigs showcasing local talent.
Ellie Coast and her partner Dave Pilla were the invited artists who performed a range of songs infront of a jam-packed venue.
Ellie, 25, a Jazz and Soul musician from Leeds is not new to the cafe as she has been performing there since she was a teenager and knows the owner of Cafe Lento, Richard Lindley, who used to let her perform for free.
“He didn’t have the money to pay his acts and I just wanted to play.” Ellie said.
“It was just so nice for us all because he likes to help me by giving me that gig and I’ve always wanted to do music.
“It’s just a thing that we’ve kept going as I’ve progressed and now he’s progressed to the point where he can pay his artists.”
She decides to perform in such a small place because it is different from her usual “pub gigs” that she does.
“It’s a lovely gig for us because we just get to play whatever we want to play and people come in here to hear something different.” Ellie said.
“It’s nice because it’s such a small place, it creates an intimate atmosphere for the audience, and it’s just really nice for us to have the things that we want to play, heard in such a nice atmosphere and that obviously boosts our popularity and gets more people listening to our stuff.
Comparing a pub gig to a smaller performance in a cafe, she added: “If we’re doing a pub gig, we’re basically employed to just please the audience with things that they’ll know and things that they can enjoy by singing along.
“You’re not being recognised as an artist yourself there, you just play other peoples’ music.
“Whereas here, you get to play your own music and a range of covers that you either just love or have arranged yourself.”
Check out one of Ellie’s performances from the night:
Dave Pilla, 35, is a singer-songwriter based in Leeds who performs with Ellie all the time but Friday night was his first time performing at Cafe Lento.
“It’s the kind of gig as a musician that you want to play” Dave said.
“It’s a quiet, attentive crowd and you can play your own songs.
“I’ve been to a lot of these sorts of gigs in various shapes and sizes and they’re always a joy to play at because you can hear a pin drop.
“There’s a time and a place for ‘rowdy’ gigs and they’re fun as well but I think the kind of stuff that I play and Ellie as well, lends itself to this type of atmosphere.
Check out one of Dave’s performances from the night:
Having live artists play is just one of the reasons why Cafe Lento is so popular.
Owner of the Cafe, Richard Lindley said: “I grew up with alot of music when I was young, my dad was a Jazz guitarist, just as an amateur and I’ve always liked live music.
“So when I started the cafe eight years ago, I thought one thing I wanna do is bring live music into the venue.”
There are not a lot of places in Headingley that do that but Cafe Lento along with White’s Deli in Headingley more than welcome it.
And one thing that Richard thinks sets them apart is the atmosphere that it brings:
For some more of Ellie and Dave’s performances, check out the playlist:
Check out Ellie’s Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Soundcloud
Check out Dave’s Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Soundcloud
Cafe Lento in Headingley set to host special gig featuring Ellie Coast.
Credit to Ellie’s Twitter @elliecoastmusic
HEADINGLEY is home to many local, independent cafes and one of these, Cafe Lento, is set to bring in something different and unconventional on Friday night.
Ellie Coast, a singer-songwriter from Leeds, is set to perform on Friday 22nd January from 7pm onwards along with her partner, Dave Pilla.
Ellie has been playing at Cafe Lento since she was a teenager and she said: “I know and love the owner, he is so kind and passionate about music.
“Every time I play there, Richard makes us Chilli Con Carne and the audience are always so respectful – you can hear a pin drop.
“It’s a great opportunity for us to appreciate our own vocals as most gigs we do are to please an audience wanting popular covers.
“This gig is one where the audience want to see our emotion, hear the delicacies of our voices and hear something they may not have heard before.
“These are the ones we play for and to top all this, it will be the first time my partner has played there with me and I’m excited for everyone to hear his music.”
If you want to hear this special gig, then go on down to Cafe Lento in Headingley on Friday.
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