Live Review: Patrick Wolf, Brous

Prepared for a night of acoustic feasting, the tiered audience take in Sophia Brous decked out in a large, ornate headpiece. Certainly a fitting choice with the decor, one could imagine her as one of the many sculptures dotted around the venue coming to life. Stripping back numbers with a skeleton crew of three, Southern Belle shines a light on her beguiling voice and cosmic edge. Her penchant for strange instruments – led by a large red box that's part accordion, mostly keyboard – creates a conduit between ragtime elements and shoegaze pop. It's a heady mix.

“Well Patrick Wolf will be here shortly. His headdress is better. I am just competing,” Brous quips before departing. The stage plays host to an array of acoustics: harps, violins, cor anglais, ukes and guitars. All that's needed is the peppering of people. Wolf's duo of talented accompanists appear, minimalising proceedings with the help of violin and the injection of black and white visuals hovering above their heads. Waves of angelic faces fill the screen: a concertina of repetitive images, cherubs and religious dogma. Materialising without announcement, Wolf takes a seat at the piano.

Wolf's Sundark And Riverlight double album contains re-recorded acoustic versions from throughout his ten-year musical career and marks ten years since the release of his debut solo album, Lycanthropy. Touring on the back of this latest release, the acoustic nature of the material gives Wolf fans a chance to experience his quieter side. As he notes, “Last time I played this song in Melbourne I was rolling about on the floor, quite pissed. I am trying to be more demure these days.” Bluebelles exudes a dreamy quality that evokes an English autumn whilst Elizabethan royalty dance overhead on the screen. This glut of images is explained as comprising family videos of British holidays and Wolf muses, “It's no wonder I ran away from home when I was 16!” The images interweave old family footage of a six-year-old Wolf running in fields with old music videos and sharpen his arrangements. Sunlight and darkness are toyed with as Wolf sings, “Close your eyes/Let the foxes fight”. A miraculous saw emerges and is played by a golden, female cupid armed with bow and drumstick. The ethereal sounds emitted capture Wolf's lyrics in a silky glow. Wolf Song 13 years on is as fresh and haunting as it ever was.

Returning to the stage one more time, Wolf's lyrics, “Don't let the city destroy our love”, coupled with the re-appropriated, “Can't you see how Melbourne you have left your mark”, make for a delightful encore, with many an avid fan declaring their love, which he returns in barrels. The openness and honesty inspired by the intimate acoustics, coupled with promises of another tour next year sweeten this bitter goodbye. We are sated for the moment.