Live Review: Evan Dando & Juliana Hatfield, Bambino Koresh

It's no surprise that tonight's support band, Bambino Koresh, is the current project for none other than Australian indie pop-rock stalwart and Lemonheads contributor, Tom Morgan (Smudge/Sneeze/Godstar). This band sees Morgan on bass and backing vocals, his wife Leticia Nischang on guitar/lead vocals and Sarah McEwan on drums. Sadly, not much of a connection is made between them and the audience, with their between-song banter limited to barely a couple of song introductions and one apparent in-joke, which makes it hard to fully appreciate their set. It also begs the question as to whether the band would have scored the support were it not for Morgan's connection with the headlining duo.

Evan Dando & Juliana Hatfield waste no time getting started with the Ben Lee-penned Dando song, All My Life. It's a gentle, sweet and yet somewhat melancholic beginning to a night that will take many of us back to our youth. The love from the audience for these two performers is almost palpable and they, in turn, seem genuinely grateful to have so many fans here to watch them do what they do best. It's Hatfield's turn next, with her track Butterflies, and this sets the pattern for the rest of the evening, with the duo taking turns to sing their own songs, as well as songs from their ongoing (in Dando's case) and past (in Hatfield's case) bands. It's at the end of Down About It that we hear the first anecdote of the night, with Dando informing Hatfield that part of the song was written about her. It's these occasional, and clearly off-the-cuff, tidbits that help make the show so warm. The next hour and a half sees a veritable torrent of indie-pop gems, including Bit Part (which leads Hatfield to clarify that it isn't her, but Polly Noonan, who starts the album version), Somebody Is Waiting For Me, Confetti, Lament by Blake Babies and a gorgeous rendition of Frank Mills (originally from the musical, Hair).

While it could be argued that they're not at their best tonight, with many off-notes and the occasional wrong chord, the audience is so enthralled that these things honestly don't seem to matter. If anything, it adds to the low-key nature of the show, where it feels as though Dando and Hatfield could easily be hanging in your lounge room, playing songs for their own amusement. What a Christmas present!