Live Review: Eskimo Joe

Sold out and no supports. Multi-ARIA award winners Eskimo Joe had their task cut out for them as they showcased their latest musical wares, sans label. It was the trio's second outing to perform their goods since parting ways with Warner and hitting up fans on Pozible to fund their latest album. Success? Well… Yes and no.

Eclectic frontman Kav Temperley, clad in a white leather biker jacket, emerged through thick faux smoke (fittingly haunting for the church location), announcing the trio, before launching into a variable repertoire of their entire catalogue – right back from Girl to Ghosts Of The Past.

Despite a promise that their new work would also herald a new electronic era for the band, they kept it relatively old school, stripping back hits like From The Sea and Love Is A Drug. Luckily, Temperley's voice fits the 'less is more' style – his baritone marring perfectly against the venue's high ceilings.

With its Eastern musical influences, Foreign Land sounded almost ethereal – with Temperley and guitarist Joel Quartermain's sparring harmonies adding a hypnotic magic to the repetitive fuzz of the bassline.

Proving himself a man of the crowd, Temperley jumped down from the stage to appeal for a 'Sara' to show herself in the crowd so he could serenade her with their hit of the same name.

Amidst a throng of cheers, and whistles (and one very embarrassed Drum photographer) Temperley jived and swung along, never missing a beat or failing to hit even the highest notes.

The trio wrapped up their set with a selection from their buzzed up, electro-inspired latest as-yet-to-be-named album. Hardly a religious experience heralding a born again era for the band, the tunes headed along a much treaded path (not necessarily a bad thing), with simply a few fuzzes and the slap of a neon-inspired synth thrown in for good measure.

Fans who contributed to the $60,000 the trio managed to toggle from their Pozible campaign won't be disappointed, but they wont be blown away either.