Live Review: Dan Sultan, The Medics

14 March 2014 | 9:07 am | Ross Clelland

Someone best tell him he is the business, for he is.

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It's all about timing. And this could well be Dan Sultan's time. In a small window between opening for that Springsteen guy – possibly the most thankless job in rock'n'roll – and the release of an album that many suggest will be the making of him, it's a Sunday night show for a not quite full venue of the faithful and the curious.

But this is a man who feeds off an audience. The Bruce shows had him singing to a crowd filling in time until an historic event, but here it's people who know (most) of the songs, and he's getting an answer for every 'Yeah!', 'Oooh!', and grunt – that the girls understand, and the boys with them wish they did.

The Medics struggled a bit. You want to like them, but somewhere between what you want them to be and what they are there's a disconnect. Maybe it's the mix which has them making Wembley widescreen racket to a mostly empty room. Kahl Wallace's voice echoes out, but often is left waiting for a reply. And they're better than that.

However, while having the attention of almost every woman – and many chaps – in the room, Dan Sultan has songs that get you in. Ain't Thinking About You is love gone, and trying to convince yourself you're over it. Hint: you're not. Further secret weapon: Even's Ash Naylor is guitar foil, embellisher, and safety net for these songs and the bloke singing them. They laugh, converse, and take the piss from each other. At other times, Sultan cajoles, flirts and exhorts the audience to enjoy it as much as he is. Most happily acquiesce. There's blues, there's rock, there's soul. The boy is gonna be a star – or should be. The perhaps unexpected charm is he still appears to be not sure if he's worthy of it, so throws himself into it with sweat and utter joy. Someone best tell him he is the business, for he is.