Live Review: Mick Turner

Playing second fiddle (no pun intended) as guitarist as one third of the world-renowned Dirty Three movement, it was the quietly spoken Mick Turner that took the opportunity to indulge in the less flamboyant sounds of his solo stuff, a lot of which came off the back of his recent LP, 2013's well received Don't Tell The Driver. An ensemble cast of Australian indie musicians (including Peggy Frew from Art Of Fighting, Kishore Ryan of Kid Sam and Caroline Kennedy-McKracken of Dead Star and others) treated those gathered in the little tent in the middle of Hyde Park to an intimate and quaint set, playing music that seemed to have lay dormant in Turner's head for quite some time.
As a working unit, the ensemble gave the sense that either they hadn't had much time to practise or the casual out-of-time moments were all part of the improv feeling Turner's sounds translate to when given the breathing space of a live show. Blowing off the cobwebs, the songs played switched between those that featured Kennedy McCracken on vocals while others were instrumental takes. Surprisingly, the music had a very Australiana/Melbourne-esque sound, with Turner relying on what looked like a customised Thinline to produce the haunting indie tones, reminiscent of great bands and artists such as The Go-Betweens and Ed Kuepper and contemporaries Art Of Fighting (in no small part thanks to the contributions of the bass player).
Well received overall, it was moments like the MT show that remind you of the living icons Australia has in the lead-up to the healing holiday long weekend.