Live Review: Bruce Mathiske

When you think of amazing guitarists, Hendrix, Santana or maybe even Clapton come to mind. The name Bruce Mathiske (Mat-is-key) is one you might not throw into that group, even as you say, 'Who the hell is this dude?'. He has been labeled one of Australia's best acoustic guitarist by a few tastemakers, and after this night's performance, it is easy to see why. Mathiske has been touring around Australia for the past four months for his new album, My Life. While he's had a bunch of launches under his belt, he announced this as his last album.

As soon as Mathiske stepped on stage, he dazzled the audience with his magnificent strumming. It was if he and the guitar were one. His first song, the title track My Life, featured a few chords from The Beatles' Eleanor Rigby. He was playing both old and new songs throughout the night. One piece was described by him as 'a new age piece that goes nowhere' called When The Clock Strikes Four. It was the only 'quiet' song he played, and the crowd was even forewarned about how slow it was going to be: “If you fall asleep, I wont be offended,” he drawled.

Every song that Mathiske played had back-story inspired by home, other cultures or other artists. He has a fascination with world music, and played some Irish and Moroccan style songs even using the didgeridoo for added effect. He also sang a couple of songs, delineating from his guitar-driven tunes.

Not only did he play music but Mathiske also joked around with the audience, even allowing questions, something rarely seen in concerts nowadays. It seemed as if he was 'catching up' with the audience, like he hadn't seen us in ages. At the end of the night he came back for one more song, ending the concert perfectly. It wasn't a performance where people were intrigued to see what he could do; the audience already knew what he could do. They came to admire his phenomenal talent.