Rising indie artist Jonathon Ng, known as EDEN, rocked Irving Plaza in downtown Manhattan on April 5. EDEN’s sold-out Thursday night performance came after another full show at the Plaza on April 4.
The back-to-back performances were part of his Vertigo World Tour for his newest album, “vertigo,” released Jan. 19. Joining him at his performance in New York was Vérité, a singer-songwriter based in Brooklyn. Vérité primed the crowd with soft-pop songs from her 2017 album “Somewhere in Between.”
Once EDEN hit the stage, he performed his acoustic-rooted, electronic-tinted album in full, starting with track “wrong” and ending with “falling in reverse.”
“I love the new album,” Brendon Borbone, an 18-year-old film student at Sacred Heart University and fan of the Dublin-based singer, said. “It’s very cinematic. I’ve been listening to him since early 2016 and this album is very different.”
Throughout the night, EDEN threw in “Fumes” and “rock + roll,” from his 2016 album “i think you think too much of me” as well as “End Credits” from his 2015 album “End Credits.” Though from the more artificially sounding era of his music, they fit seamlessly into the setlist.
Before the show, Brendon’s sister, Nicole Borbone, a 20-year-old theater student at Fordham University, waited with her brother in the VIP section. Brendon Borbone wore one of EDEN’s new “Vertigo” sweaters, the logo designed with Japanese translations.
“He’s very truthful in his new album,” Nicole Borbone said. “It’s raw and depressing — like a beautiful cry.”
Though he is considerably new to the music world, beginning as The Eden Project in 2013, EDEN has shown amazing potential as an up-and-coming indie artist. He is well-known among his fanbase today for his deep, sentimental and minimalist style, a fair shift from his former electronic and EDM-based music during his time as The Eden Project. From a young age, he has shown musical talent and was classically trained in violin and self-taught in both piano and guitar.
EDEN’s final installment of his Vertigo World Tour will be held June 26 in Perth, Australia.
