Live Review: Lincoln Le Fevre & The Insiders, Paper Arms, Wil Wagner

It may only be the eve of winter, but tonight it's pouring like it might as well be the middle of it. It's the sort of weather that makes leaving the couch a decision that takes a lot of deliberating. But it's hard to resist the Curtin, with three of Australia's best new(ish) acts playing tonight.

Later in the night, Lincoln Le Fevre remarks that if Wil Wagner “isn't breaking your heart, you're doin' it wrong”. He's not kidding. Wagner, frontman for The Smith Street Band, kicks off tonight's proceedings armed with a guitar and his already extensive collection of heartfelt songs. We get treated to Golden (one of Wagner's older tracks that he rarely plays any more), a bunch of songs off his latest EP, Laika, and a couple of Smith Street songs thrown in for good measure.

Next up is Paper Arms, playing their last Australian show for several months before they head off to conquer Europe. If tonight's anything to go by, they should be winning over plenty of fans along the way. They've got their live show down to a fine art, cramming their set full of as many songs as possible and tearing through them. Even the two new songs they play (from their upcoming split with Nothington) go off without a hitch and get a great response from the crowd.

One of the surprises of last year's Poison City Weekender, Lincoln Le Fevre has moved from strength to strength over the last 12 months – releasing an excellent second album, Resonation, and playing shows with William Elliott Whitmore, Bob Evans and headlining one of the All Tomorrow's Shoeys shows. Tonight, accompanied by his band The Insiders, he plays most of Restorations and a few songs from his first album, 30-Watt Heart.

Le Fevre has pretty much mastered the ability to write great sing-alongs, as the entire front half of the crowd roars along to just about every song. Driftwood and Dilettantes prove to be the biggest hits, although every song gets a great reception. The acoustic songs work well electrified and all translate smoothly to a live setting, even when Le Fevre trips over his own words on Hope & Crown. After an extensive set, the band finish up with Get Drunk, See Bands and leave with the crowd shouting for “one more song” and “ten more bongs”. But they're done for the night, so it's one more drink for warmth and time to head out into winter.