Live Review: The Paper Kites, Georgia Fair, Robbie Miller

Despite the Fremantle home game, Melbourne indie folksters The Paper Kites managed to fill the Fly By Night last Saturday evening quite comfortably. First support act Robbie Miller and his smooth, heartfelt lyricism captivated the initially small and intimate crowd. With a voice like warm caramel wrapped in an excellently crafted vibrato, Miller's pretty consistently themed love songs were enough to melt a lady's heart. His tune, Asked You Once, stood out from the rest despite the common love song subject matter, and the upbeat Come Take It All rounded off the set nicely.

Formerly-Sydney-now-Melbourne-town duo Georgia Fair had a sweet bluesy-folk style reminiscent of Boy & Bear, with impeccably tuned harmonies to match. Love Free Me was a great insight into the new album, and from their first album, All Through Winter, their song, Where You Been?, was a personal highlight of the set, a catchy and well-written little number with a great hook.

Sounding very much like (now broken up) The Middle East with a hint of Iceland's Of Monsters and Men, humble five-piece headliners The Paper Kites gave the crowd what they'd been waiting for with a chilled-out, mellow set fitting in perfectly at the Fly. Frontman Sam Bentley's musical and songwriting talent was undeniable, and their tune, Bloom, was met with much audience enthusiasm. New song, Tenenbaum, saw Bentley give a stellar solo performance, followed by a duet with leading lady Christina Lacy on Never Heard A Sound, although it was hard to engage with Lacy, someone who looked as much like she'd rather be anywhere but there. New song, In Reverie, near the end of the set finally gave the audience something to dance (well, more like 'sway slightly') to, but despite the lack of audience movement for much of the set it was a well-received performance. Each of the acts gave a unique talent-filled interpretation of their musical style, and the perfect venue choice for the three bands saw a successful gig that captivated the audience right from the start of the night.