Live Review: Courtney Barnett, D.D. Dumbo, Methyl Ethel

“Last time I was in Perth I had to play on my own ‘cause I couldn’t afford to bring the band, and I thought everybody hated it. Now look at you all!” Courtney Barnett’s still a bit surprised by her rise to everyone-loves-me-dom, but no one else in the sold-out Fly By Night seemed to be. Intelligent, personal songs, delivered with that light husk, that falling inflection, beautiful wild hair flying across the stage – what a dream!

It’s a big ask to warm up the Fly By Night, more barn than nightclub, no places to hide for the audience or band. As Methyl Ethel, Jake Webb, Thom Wolfe and Chris Wright got the quiet early mewlers on side with beautiful, if safe at first, versions of tracks from Webb’s outstanding Guts and Teeth EPs. Bassist Wolfe put an arm sling back on after the show, evidently ignoring injury for the love of music. Cute!

Melbourne’s Oliver Perry as D.D Dumbo began a little hesitantly – a plane delay and absent soundcheck meant a loop-reliant set had a few level issues, but Perry was equally endearing and impressive. His guitar melodies are the ‘hero of the dish’ – separate, live drums would mean more room for Perry’s joyous vocals too, but then it wouldn’t be as fun and dangerous. Dilemma! For local comparisons, try solo Chris Cobilis with his shirt on, Lyndon Blue as Solar Barge but without the cape, or Benjamin Witt with gentler steez... or to look further afield think the voice of Sting with the gentle spirit of Sufjan Stevens. But of course, Dumbo was totally his own thing, and that’s why it was real nice.

Courtney Barnett seems to eschew pandering to anyone’s expectations, but in the end that’s the thing that’s most appealing. ‘The Courtney Barnetts’ – drummer Dave Mundie, bassist Bones Sloane and guitarist Dan Luscombe – were lovely company, especially Luscombe, shredding his way through breaks, threatening to overpower but thankfully exercising restraint. Barnett left the big radio bangers to the end of the set, but really everyone was with the band the whole way through.

It was the encore though, with Barnett returning unaccompanied, that delivered the most powerful song of the set, Depreston, a pathos-laden homage to Melbourne suburb Preston, where Barnett’s own guitar style came to the fore, and no words were lost in the mix. For the record, Courtney, for when you come back: everyone bloody loved it.