Live Review: Mick Turner

13 July 2014 | 6:27 pm | Guido Farnell

A three-piece horn section adds a swelling radiance and sense of optimism to the mix.

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Over the next few weeks culture vultures of all descriptions look set to descend upon the National Gallery Of Victoria (NGV) as the gallery hosts a series of gigs for its Friday Nights At Italian Masters knees-up.

We are greeted by a set of playful polar bear sculptures with fur made from feathers that have been dyed bright colours.

As we make our way through the oversized mouse-hole entrance into the somewhat brutalist building, warm air defrosts and the sound of '50s rock'n'roll draws us into the gallery away from the chill wind that's blowing across Melbourne town. We are greeted by a set of playful polar bear sculptures with fur made from feathers that have been dyed bright colours. On the right there's an exhibition of Williams Blake's fantastical illustrations of heaven and hell. We head to the back of the gallery where in glittering gold ornate frames are some mightily pretty paintings from Spain's royal court which were painted by renowned Italian renaissance and baroque masters. The attentive crowd falls over themselves as they stare in wonder and bask in the glow of some magnificent paintings by Raphel, Titian, Tintoretto and Tiepolo amongst others.

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The Italian masters fill our eyes with colour, an abundance of religious imagery and scenes from behind the palace walls. It is a magnificent visual primer for the aural stimulation to follow. A surprisingly vague Mick Turner mumbles introductions to his band as they come together to give us a long and winding pastoral jam that invites us to drift away on the comfortable clouds of sound issuing from the PA, while staring blankly at the stained-glass ceiling of the Great Hall.

As an aspiring painter whose work has adorned the covers of his solo and his band Dirty Three's albums, Turner seems a natural choice for this gig. Showcasing his most recent solo album Don't Tell The Driver Turner balances a natural preference for instrumentals with the inclusion of vocalists Caroline Kennedy-McCracken and Oliver Mann.

Turner and his band deliver a darkly glimmering tapestry of sound.

Turner and his band play just a handful of selections over an hour. The extended live versions aim to create an immersive ambience into which listeners can disappear. On a few songs the inclusion of a three-piece horn section adds a swelling radiance and sense of optimism to the mix.  Evolving from introspective meditation that grows into grand vistas of soundscape, Turner and his band deliver a darkly glimmering tapestry of sound that compliments the art which hangs on the NGV's walls.