Live Review: Rob Snarski, Tracey Read

While the rain was heard hitting the Astor hard, it creates little distraction from the opening performance of Tracey Read. She gently pulls together an indie pop meets folk style reminiscent of Holly Throsby or Will Oldham, telling tales and gently plucking her acoustic before, outside environment aside, a dead silent room. Alone on stage with only slight reverb, Read is exposed but shines, the playful, childlike nature of her songs captivating the room, and an a cappella version of All The Wrong Shoes only strengthening her connection with the audience. While a few false starts on a cover turns into an abandoned track and a slight unnerving of the respectfully quiet attendees, Read starts the night on a charming note.

After a short break, Rob Snarksi steps up to the microphone and begins Elton John's classic Tiny Dancer. Much of the night is centred on the tour's namesake release, Low Fidelity, a series of fan-requested covers recorded through an iPhone and stripped back to acoustics. The resulting effect is that something with the impact of Elton John's stadium pleaser, while turned into adult-conte­mporary, is pared down and delivered with a crisp vocal from Snarski that work surprisingly well. Featuring Shane O'Mara on guitar, the night cherry-picks from the record, with Dolphins by Fred Neil, Wichita Linesman by Jimmy Webb and a spinetingling rendition of the bitter sweetness of Merle Haggard's Turning Off A Memory. Snarski envelops himself in the tracks in a striking combination of passion and potentially intimidation of their stature. Turning to his own impressive catalogue, he pulls back into his previous solo record with Tender Like A Bruise along with a Chad's Tree classic, The Flood Johanna. Ever the showmen, the pair banter between tracks spinning tales of a recording's origin, thoughts on a song's elements, or even an unfortunate case of mistaken identity that confuses O'Mara for a certain member of INXS. The attitude and enjoyment the duo exude helps successfully steer the night away from feeling like a standard covers gig and more a showcasing of influences and appreciation, though it's hard to fit Pulp's Babies into that category despite its being a highlight of the night. Winding up the intimate evening and adoring room with Joni Mitchell's breathtaking River, Snarski continues his evolution as accomplished solo artist while also setting us all up for Low Fidelity Volume 2.