Live Review: Caitlin Rose, Jimmy Tait

The Basement is not only a place where people go to get a taste of reasonably priced alt-country, but they also make available some seriously delicious Mexican street food that is not only well priced but super tasty, as the Melbourne band Jimmy Tait commented at one point during a moody but engaging support slot. The sultry sounds and songs were an alternative soundtrack which varied between a more gothic version of Chris Isaac and a pre-Cruel Guards The Panics. The focal point was Sara Retallick's lead vocals but the band was given depth with the skill of lead guitarist, lead drums and keys, and the backing vocals of Adrian Stoyles also on bass. Expect to see more of the band in other capital cities in the coming months, as they are deserving of any future hype.

A sleeper hit for 2013 is The Stand-In from Nashville, Tennessee's Caitlin Rose, whose return to Australia was met with warm applause and a cheer from a crowd of revellers who looked accustomed to seated gigs (dinner included). With full band in tow, including some good ol' fashioned lap steel guitar, the American country girl clocked in with the single No One To Call, one of the country singles of the year, and followed with a number of tracks off the current album. Her habit of explaining the origins of a lot of her songs – which gave the bittersweet, doomed nuptials Pink Champagne a new connotation – gave them a lot of new meaning that makes sense in hindsight, given we are talking country and western music. Mixing her own songs with interpretations of others, it was her cover of Jonny Fritz's Chevy Baretta that suggested she ain't a sweet little darlin' – that was endearing in the end, showing she is more than adept at playing both a fool and a fooler.