Live Review: Justin Townes Earle, Lindi Ortege, Marlon Williams

Corner Hotel feels as down and dirty as a Nashville dive bar tonight. Marlon Williams gets things smoking early with the help of backing band The Yarra Benders and Dan Parsons adds a spellbinding honky-tonk sound on pedal steel guitar. Dressed in a slinky velvet dress, red cowboy boots and delicate black fascinator, Lindi Ortega looks every bit the waif-like beauty singing lovelorn tales of woe. Heartbroken types in the crowd are moved when Hard As This is played slowly on the acoustic while “necrophilic love song” Lived And Died Alone exudes a spine chilling-yet-delicious creepiness. After Ortega sings, “I wish I had some whisky/I wish I had some weed,” on Demons Don’t Get Me Down, a considerate gentleman in the crowd hands her a cheeky shot of Canadian Club. Ortega is so sweet, honest and heartfelt that punters automatically eat out of the palm of her hand. 

The utterly charming Justin Townes Earle is a chatty fellow between songs, telling many a story about a few old habits, crazy bastard uncles and dipshit music biz types, all in his languid Nashville drawl. Single Mothers features beautiful slide guitar while Mama’s Eyes gets the pedal steel back working its Americana magic. Introducing Memphis In The Rain, Earle informs everyone that the city is one of the nastiest places on earth, which prompts a wisecracking dude in the crowd to ask, “Have you been to Frankston?” Earle sends the band off and goes solo acoustic to sing about his barrel-chested Texan grandfather in They Killed John Henry, a crowd pleaser that rouses plenty of whistles and cheers. The band head back to the stage for several more tunes, including a sweet tribute to Billie Holiday. Earle expresses he wishes to honour her not just as a junkie who could sing, but also as a little girl from Baltimore, in the sweet and gentle White Gardenias. Earle also plays a cover of his mama’s favourite song, Fleetwood Mac’s Dreams, which rolls with a simmering, sultry beauty thanks to the pedal steel guitar.     

Finishing with Harlem River Blues, a track about a “big ol’ stinking body of water”, this rocking little number gets the crowd dancing the night out. With a touch of Nashville playing in Richmond tonight, Earle brings country music for us to celebrate in all its dirty, broken glory.