Live Review: Kate Miller-Heidke

The Sydney Opera House is perhaps the most appropriate venue in Australia to host beloved singer Kate Miller-Heidke. Attendees and performers rise to the sense of occasion with both their dress and conduct, but there is always a sense of the daring and the experimental. This could be a metaphor for Miller-Heidke’s work, and for this tour, with the music stripped back to slightly more traditional, folky arrangements, the collision of the zany with the wholesome was never more apparent.

Miller-Heidke arrived on stage wearing a bronze headdress, accompanied by husband and guitarist Keir Nuttall, who was wearing a denim jacket with an Iron Maiden patch on the back – it was immediately clear that this was going to be an evening of colour and excitement. With help from Isaac Hayward (the music director of Muriel’s Wedding The Musical, which had music and lyrics from Miller-Heidke and Nuttall) and Jess Hitchcock, Miller-Heidke recreated cuts The Devil Wears A Suit, O Vertigo! and the heartbreakingly beautiful Ernie with a level of control that was stunning and lifted the audience into a dreamland. 

Kate Miller-Heidke @ Sydney Opera House. Photo by Pete Dovgan.

Indeed, there were moments of energy and fun that were always going to be present at a Miller-Heidke gig. You’ve Underestimated Me, Dude was both leering and terrifying, while hits Can’t Shake It and Words featured extended instrumental jams.

Miller-Heidke closed the main set with the beautiful The Last Day On Earth and darkly wonderful Humiliation – with that kind of set closer, there was always going to be an encore. Thankfully, she played down the cheese of the curtain call and returned with the band straight away for for a lovely rendition of Eurovision hit Zero Gravity. There were no ten-foot poles in sight, but it was still magical.

Miller-Heidke is rightfully celebrated for her experimentation and refusal to conform to musical norms. The way her voice was showcased on the night – without the accompaniment of full musical arrangements – was spectacular. It takes a special artist to be able to recreate energetic pop songs in this way, but Miller-Heidke did so with conviction.