Courtney BarnettRaid your local Vinnie’s, trim that pretentious hipster beard and dress like your grandparents, triple j’s newest darling is in town and it’s a sold-out show.
Thigh Master open the night to the hundred or so devotees that have rocked up early and greets them with a mid-tempo set packed full of songs based consistently on four chords, these guys have obviously taken lessons from the Sonic Youth school of songwriting and in no way is that a bad thing. The singer mumbles over the jangly guitars and through his fringe that the last song is about to happen and that we probably don’t care. How alternative.
The crowd is well and truly growing in both size and noise levels as Melbourne five-piece Teeth & Tongue take the stage with an energy that takes the crowd by surprise. Think Yeah Yeah Yeah’s meets Kate Bush with some Ting Tings undertones, these energetic, groove-laden pieces have the crowd moving their collective heads with a synchronicity that would put North Korea’s military marches to shame. One’s inner production nerd has to give props to the seamless blend of drum machine and acoustic drums; not many (if any) bands can use both without one of the two sounding completely out of place but somehow these guys pull it off in a live context. After this pleasant surprise, it’s onto the main act.
The venue by now is well and truly packed as, behind the black curtain, the bass rumbles and the crowd starts roaring … only to find itself waiting another ten minutes – false alarm. The left-handed guitar-playing silhouette of Courtney Barnett is eventually completely lit up by a blue glow as Barnett unleashes her accent onto the audience. Avant Gardener, Depreston and the crowd favourite Pedestrian At Best are all trotted out with ample chanting opportunities for the audience, broken up with Barnett’s rambling Bob-Dylan-esque verses and Nirvana-scented choruses. Barnett’s show produces a ‘90s grungy vibe that simply isn’t captured nearly closely enough in her studio releases, which is fine by all and sundry. As the band leaves the stage the crowd immediately begins to chant for encores at a volume that would compete with even some of the bigger metal crowds Max Watt’s has seen. The set ends with the Hottest 100-featured Pickles From The Jar, which gives an opportunity for one last parting gift of Barnett’s one-liners and slight self-deprecation.
It’s a fine few hours of Aussie songwriting on display and deserving of its ‘sold-out’ status. The crowd will have Barnett’s lyrical hooks running through their heads for days and it’s unlikely there’ll be much complaining about it.
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