The Brunswick Music Festival is currently happening in venues around town, and tonight I went to Estonian House for a very special tribute to the legendary Dolly Parton. Coming together to sing some of Dolly's most loved songs as well as a few rarities were Emily Lubitz (Tinpan Orange), Loretta Miller, Emma Donovan, Sarah Mary Chadwick and Alexander Gow (Oh Mercy). Everyone took turns singing either solo or in small pairings alongside a fantastic house band.
Emily Lubitz opened the show on autoharp with "Coat Of Many Colors." Highlights from the evening included Emma Donovan's powerhouse vocals on "Jolene" and "Harper Valley P.T.A.," Alex Gow singing the rarity "Down From Dover," and Loretta Miller doing an amazing version of "I Will Always Love You." Alex and Loretta dueted on the classic "Islands In The Stream," which inspired some people in the crowd to come up front and dance, and then it turned into a big celebration as everyone came back out on stage to sing the final song of the evening, "9 To 5." It was a wonderful to hear each artist's interpretation of Dolly's songs, and huge kudos to the house band who did an incredible job learning all the songs that were played tonight.
Next on the bill was Alex Gow from Oh Mercy doing a solo set. It's never a great sign when someone needs to use an asthma inhaler to be able to sing, and Alex was on his three times throughout the set due to a cold. He opened with a cover of Ed Kuepper's "This Hideous Place" and played a mix of songs from his last few albums ranging from the brooding "Iron Cross" and "Lady Eucalyptus" to the more uptempo "Sandy" and "Deep Heat." Alex invited Liam McGorry to join him on stage to play trumpet on "National Park" and his new unreleased track "Time And Date In New York," which was the last song he played. Despite not feeling great Alex powered through his short set.
The room was pretty full by the time Jack Ladder & The Dreamlanders took to the stage. The set list featured many songs from Blue Poles, with highlights being "Can't Say," "White Flag," "Blue Mirror," and my favorite "Susan." Jack's baritone voice and the cool vibe of the band had the crowd entranced from the start, with bassist Donny Benet getting a couple of shout outs during the evening. The set also contained some tracks from previous releases, including "Cold Feet," "Come On Back This Way," and "Hurtsville" with Alex joining the band on acoustic guitar. Overall it was an entertaining night with two of Australia's most talented lyricists.
Oh Mercy has just put out their fifth album Cafe Oblivion, and tonight was the final show of their Australian tour at Howler to celebrate its release. I arrived for the second support act Jae Laffer, who played a mix of songs from his band The Panics and solo material. Playing acoustic guitar and accompanied by an electric guitarist and the occasional pedal steel guitar, his set included The Panics singles "Don't Fight It" and "Weatherman."
In a throw back to Oh Mercy shows of old the band came onstage to the sound of birds. They surprisingly started the set with a cover of Burt Bacarach's "This Guy's In Love With You." The songs from Cafe Oblivion featured prominently throughout the night, including the singles "Keep A Light On" and "National Park" as well as "Lee & Nancy," "Hot Topic" and "Auto Bellissimo" (unfortunately my favorite track "Ring & The Jewel" didn't get played). Alex Gow sounded fantastic vocally and did a mini solo set in the middle with "Lady Eucalyptus," "My Man" and a new song which I think is titled "Time And Date In New York."
I was impressed by the new arrangements for most of the songs, and this latest incarnation of the Oh Mercy live band is a bit of a powerhouse. Older tracks such as "Deep Heat," "Can't You Hear My Body (Calling Out To You)" and "Sandy" had a bit of new life to them. To finish out the main set they played "Restless Woman" and then Alex did an impromptu encore with a cover of Ed Kuepper's "This Hideous Place" that had the room silent. Overall this was one of the stronger Oh Mercy live performances I've seen in a while and I'm hoping we'll get more live shows sooner rather than later.
Here's the Aussie musician filled video for "Keep A Light On" where Alex wears a blazer he describes as a Split Enz b-side (he also wore it tonight):
Currently located along the Crown Riverwalk is the pop-up Jack Daniel's Barrel House, which sort of looks like a barn/dive bar and has Australian music acts playing for free each night. It's not exactly the venue you'd expect to see Oh Mercy live, but Alex was scheduled to play tonight so Mary, David, Ebony and I headed down to check out his set.
Alex started solo on electric guitar with "Sandy" and "My Man." We got a bit of a shout out as he said it was good to see some familiar faces in the crowd. During his 45 minute set he was also joined by Grace on piano for some songs. We were treated to the new tracks "Hot Topic," "Restless Woman" and "Auto Bellissimo" off his upcoming album due out in February 2018 (Mary's hoping for a release on my birthday). Tracks off of his last album When We Talk About Love included "Iron Cross," "Can't You Hear My Body (Calling Out To You)" and "Lady Eucalyptus," which was when some guys in the crowd decided to scull their Jack Daniel's drinks to Alex's great amusement. It was a very hot day in Melbourne and the venue was really bringing that Southern feel as more and more moths started flying around the stage lights as the set progressed.
There was a lovely cover of Leonard Cohen's "One Of Us Cannot Be Wrong," and he finished the evening with the current single "National Park" (complete with the opening guitar riff of Guns N' Roses' "Sweet Child O' Mine" at the end). It was an amusing show and Alex joked he was living out his rock star fantasy by playing at the venue.
It's been a year since Oh Mercy last played a show in Melbourne, and tonight they were back at the nightclub Hugs & Kisses in support of the new single "National Park." Opening the evening was James Moloney & the Mad Dog Harrisons with James doing a solo set on acoustic guitar which included a cover of Tom Petty And The Heartbreaker's "Refugee." Next up was the band Ern Malley, who played a fantastic set with their 1970s rock/alt-country vibe. I was quite impressed and will be keeping an eye out for them in the future.
The latest incarnation of the Oh Mercy live band includes all guys this time (the first time there hasn't been a female member in the mix). The hour long set showcased some of the new songs which will appear on the new album due to be released in early 2018. The highlights for me were "Hideous Place" (standout track of the night), the driving rhythm of "Hot Topic," the excellent "National Park" and the slow ballad "Auto Bellissimo," which Alex joked he wants to go viral in Italy (and also led to him singing a snippet of the La Porchetta commercial jingle). Alex had quite a few funny moments throughout the night, whether it was puns, praising Jesus and making a Hillsong reference, comparing a song to a jeep commercial, or doing a shout out to Cameron Daddo and SmoothFM.
We were treated to some Burt Bacharach with a cover of "This Guy's In Love With You" and a few lines of "Walk On By." Older Oh Mercy songs in the set were "My Man" and "Deep Heat" off the Deep Heat album, and the When We Talk About Love tracks "Can't You Hear My Body (Calling Out To You)," "Lady Eucalyptus" solo and "Sandy," which closed out the night. I ran into Alex on the way into the venue, and Mary and I had a brief chat with him after the show and he was as gracious as always. It will be great when the new album is finally released (especially since it's been done for a while).
Here's the video for "National Park" (shot in Castlemaine):
Celebrating Grand Final Eve and Alex Gow's 29th birthday, Oh Mercy and friends played at The Workers Club tonight as part of the Rolling Stone Live Lodge series. The opening act for the evening was Melbourne four piece RVG. Frontwoman Romy Vager was quite a captivating presence, and their sound was reminiscent of early 1980s post-punk. It was a really good and authentic set.
Alex kicked off the evening on keyboard playing "Lady Eucalyptus." The first part of the set featured Alex solo on keyboard and guitar with the occasional friend invited to join him on stage for songs. We got to hear old favorites "Lay Everything On Me" and "Keith St.," and Olympia came out to play on the When We Talk About Love tracks "Let Me Be Him" and "Iron Cross." Alex did a beautiful version of Ed Kuepper's "This Hideous Place" on acoustic guitar. When Jae Laffer of The Panics came out he changed things up by playing Alex a song - The Panics' new single "Weatherman."
Being Alex's birthday he was a bit introspective about life and death, and joked that he felt this gig with his friends was like a funeral scene out of an episode of Touched By An Angel (perhaps the first time that tv show has ever been referenced at a concert). This show provided Alex with the opportunity to debut some of the new songs he's been working on. They covered a range of themes from Japanese saunas to crocodile meat, and the stand out track for me was "Hot Topic" with its steady groove.
The second part of the set featured the one night only Oh Mercy "hot rock band" line up containing Laura Jean on bass, Rob McComb (The Triffids) on guitar, Ceci Dowling on
viola, Liam McGorry (Saskwatch) on horns, and Etta
Curry (Loose Tooth) on drums. The band sounded fantastic as they played "My Man" (perhaps the best live version of that song I've heard with Liam's flugelhorn), "Without You" and "Deep Heat." The evening concluded with the band and Jae Laffer doing a cover of Bob Dylan's "Highway 61 Revisited." It was an entertaining night with some very talented musicians. Alex says there should be a new Oh Mercy album next year, so that is definitely something to look forward to.
Alex Gow (Oh Mercy) and Dan Kelly's Australian Dreamers Tour has been working its way around the country for the past four weeks. Luckily for me there was a second swing through Victoria so Belinda and I took a little road trip to Geelong for tonight's final show of the tour at The Workers Club.
It was a small and intimate crowd at the venue (possibly due to Geelong playing footy this evening). Emma Russack was the opening act and did a solo set on electric guitar. She sounded good and I really enjoyed her last song about wishing she knew her famous older ex-boyfriend in his prime.
The format for these shows was Alex and Dan playing both solo and together on each other's songs. Alex came out first and opened the evening with "Lady Eucalyptus" and "Iron Cross" before Dan joined him on stage for "Sandy." It was then Alex's turn to depart as Dan played "Baby Bonus" and "Ex Bandido" solo. The guys were quite funny with their introductions to songs and assorted requests to the soundman for different vocal effects on their mics (e.g. whale, Mary MacKillop). Dan got the audience involved in singing along to the chorus for "Everything's Amazing" and "Bindi Irwin Apocalypse Jam." The guys did a tropicalia version of Oh Mercy's "Drums" and a shortened "On The Run" off Dan's Leisure Panic! album.
Alex played "My Man" and "Deep Heat" solo, and was quite thrilled to no longer have to play the harmonica solo again for the later after tonight (I actually didn't mind the harmonica as it was a bit of a throw back to those early Oh Mercy shows). Dan and Alex rejoined forces for "Never Stop The Rot" and ended the evening with a very psychedelic version of "Dan Kelly's Dream" which had Alex on keys and samples and also included a bit of Canned Heat's "On The Road Again." It was a great show and I wish I had been in town to catch the earlier Melbourne date.
Here are a couple songs Alex and Dan did together in May as part of Tram Sessions:
As part of the "Collingwood Open" open-air series the Gasometer Hotel is hosting musical acts through February with the roof to the bandroom open. Tonight was Melbourne's own Oh Mercy in their first show since winning the 2015 ARIA Award for Best Adult Contemporary Album for When We Talk About Love.
I arrived about half way through the opening act Gabriella Cohen, who played a solo set on electric guitar and sounded good. Mary then joined me before The Ocean Party took the stage. They are probably Melbourne's most prolific band, having released an album each year since 2011 and recently putting out the hilariously titled EP Mess & Noise Critics Poll 2015. It was good to see them live again (and once again supporting Oh Mercy) but unfortunately the sound mix was off for most of their set, particularly around being able to hear the keyboards and vocals. They played some new songs along with the album tracks "Guess Work, "Greedy," "Light Weight" (which featured Zac dancing around a bit on the floor as part of a bet), and one of my favorites "Head Down" to finish the set.
It was a full band show for Oh Mercy tonight and they opened with "Can't You Hear My Body (Calling Out To You)." Alex was channelling the Deep Heat era in his very shiny pink lame button down shirt. The set list was mainly songs off When We Talk About Love, with highlights being "Without You," "All Roads Lead To You," a solo version of "Lady Eucalyptus," "Sandy" and "Let Me Be Him." I thought the band sounded good and this was the first show for me where they've really gelled with the songs and made them their own. Tracks from previous albums were also played, including "Keith St." "Drums" (complete with a Burt Bacharach style opening verse), "Deep Heat" and "Lay Everything On Me." Alex said he is currently recording new songs in his bedroom and played "Get On." The band once again did a cover of The Waterboys' "The Whole Of The Moon" and finished the night with "My Man." It was good to see Alex feeling well and being in a more positive head space these days. Hopefully we don't have to wait too long to hear some more of these new tracks he is working on.
This morning, as part of Melbourne Music Week's Morning Ritual and the Face the Music conference, we were treated to a concert by Alexander Gow of Oh Mercy at the MPavilion in the Queen Victoria Gardens. Unfortunately it was a drizzly and chilly start to the day, but at least the structure designed by AL_A kept people dry.
Alex played an acoustic set and started (ironically?) with "Deep Heat." We got to hear "Let Me Be Him," "Iron Cross," and "Lady Eucalyptus" off of his latest album When We Talk About Love, and "Drums" and "My Man" from Deep Heat. The two special moments of the set were getting to hear the unreleased track "Get On" live for the first time, and Alex's cover of the Leonard Cohen song "One Of Us Cannot Be Wrong." It was a lovely way to my Friday, and as always, a pleasure to see Alex play live.
You can check out the When We Talk About Love acoustic series on the Oh Mercy Facebook page. Also, here's a video of "Without You" from the Parlour gig I attended in June (hint- you may see someone you know in it).
Tonight Mary, Tash and I attended the kick off of Oh Mercy's When We Talk About Love album tour at Howler in Brunswick (I love a gig that I can walk to). The opening act was six piece band Crepes, who sounded great with their indie, jangly guitar sound. Next up was four piece Totally Mild, who had a very loose set due to DJing in the afternoon and enjoying themselves a bit too much.
Oh Mercy took to the stage and started the sold out gig with "I Don't Really Want To Know." It was good to hear some of my favorite tracks off the new album such as "Sandy," "All Roads Lead To You," "Let Me Be Him" and "Without You." There were some interesting screen projections from old movies and other sources during each song, with my favorite being the old school Collingwood footage - a brave choice considering their big loss to Richmond today. Mid-set Alex sent off the band to perform a beautiful solo version of "Lady Eucalyptus," which had the room listening silently.
We also got some songs from each of the previous releases, including "Stay Please Stay," "Keith St," "Drums" and "Lay Everything On Me." I must say that it is on these tracks in particular that I really miss Simon, Eliza and Rohan as the current arrangements really lack the nuance that they would bring knowing those songs inside and out. As is becoming tradition, there was a new cover song towards the end of the set with the band playing an impassioned version of Leonard Cohen's "One Of Us Cannot Be Wrong." The evening ended with "Deep Heat," and all in all it was a pretty straight forward show with some strong vocals by Alex.
Here's an acoustic version of "Lady Eucalyptus" from the BRAG Sound Sessions:
Unplugged Live is back for a six week run on Sunday afternoons at the NGV Australia. Curated and hosted by Jae Laffer of The Panics, each session brings together a contemporary artist and musician for a discussion and performance in the gallery space. This afternoon's event began with Melbourne visual artist Anne-Marie May. She talked about the processes she goes through in creating her works, which are sculptural and utilise different materials. Anne-Marie has two pieces that currently feature in The Kaleidoscopic Turn exhibition: Untitled (Construction of coloured rays),which is made from felt, and RGB (Mobile), which is made from thermally formed acrylic.
The second half hour involved Alexander Gow from Oh Mercy. He and Jae have known each other for 8 years when a young Oh Mercy opened for The Panics, and their drummer Myles produced Oh Mercy's debut album Privileged Woes. Their chat covered a variety of topics, including the songwriting process, being creative and making something beautiful (which happens for Alex when is happy and healthy), the representations of himself at a certain age on each album, and the influence of Australia and his upbringing on his music.
Interspersed between the discussion segments were the songs "Cool Water," "Lady
Eucalyptus," "Iron Cross" and "Let Me Be Him," which sounded heavenly in
the acoustics of the room. Alex talked about the writing of these songs and others for the latest album When We Talk About Love in Nashville, and the benefits of being an outsider not writing country music there. The most interesting bit of the chat for me was towards the end when Alex spoke about his creative ambition to explore the essence of him and get that into a song, which is why he prefers to work by himself at this point in his career.
The Leaps and Bounds Music Festival is on at the moment, and as part of the events around the City of Yarra Mary and I went to see Oh Mercy play at the Melba Spiegeltent tonight. The opening act was one of our Melbourne faves, The Ocean Party. It was good to finally see them play live again, and their set mainly featured new songs off their upcoming album. We also got to hear the latest single "Guess Work," as well as "Deluded" and the fantastic "Head Down" off their previous album Soft Focus.
It was a full band show for Oh Mercy, and they started the evening with "Iron Cross." As this was the first official gig since the release of When We Talk About Love, the set list featured most of the songs off the new album. Many of my current faves are the uptempo tracks such as "Sandy," "All Roads Lead To You," and "Let Me Be Him." "Lady Eucalyptus," which Alex played solo on acoustic guitar, and "Can't You Hear My Body (Calling Out To You)" were also quite good tonight. We even got treated to an unreleased song with funny lyrics called "Hot Topic."
Alex was in good spirits and told an amusing story about being out jogging and getting hit with a dirty puddle of water as a car drove by. This ultimately led to him singing a short ode to his asthma inhaler. The band played some older tracks as well, with "My Man," "Stay Please Stay," "Deep Heat," Drums" and "Lay Everything On Me" making it into the set list. The final song of the evening was a cover of The Go-Betweens' "Love Goes On!" in honor of their upcoming slot at the GW McLellan Tent at Splendour In The Grass in a few weeks.
Here's the voyeuristic video for "If You Come Around Tonight"
It's almost like the old days with Oh Mercy playing monthly gigs in Melbourne at the moment with the imminent release of album number four When We Talk About Love. Tonight's gig was hosted at Magic Johnston in Collingwood by Parlour, a new platform that connects artists with hosts for intimate house shows. Mary, Tash and I got our free mulled wine on arrival and took a seat on the floor for the show. Alex began the evening with a cover of David McComb's "The Good Life Never Ends" and played a set that mainly featured songs off the new album.
It's always such a privilege (not a woe) to get to hear new songs before an album is released, and an added bonus when the renditions are stripped back and acoustic. The standout tracks for me at the moment are "Sandy," "All Roads Lead To You" and "Let Me Be Him." We also got to hear "Catherine," "Iron Cross" and "I Don't Really Want To Know," with Alex joined by Cecilia on viola for many of these songs. Alex was on fire with the puns throughout the night incorporating Jamaica and various Victorian towns (the Euroa one was my favorite). Some tracks from the previous album also made it onto the set list with "My Man," "Deep Heat" and b-side "Lady Eucalyptus" (which is also on the new album with some strings) played. The evening ended with "Without You," and Alex was kind enough to have some albums for sale ahead of the official release next Friday. Don't miss out- order your copy of When We Talk About Lovehere.
It's been two years since Oh Mercy last played a proper band show in Melbourne, so it was no surprise that tonight's gig at The Gasometer Hotel to launch the new single "Sandy" was sold out. Mary and I arrived just as the first act, the Steve Miller Band (not the one you're thinking of), kicked off the night with a loud, old school punk set of songs and covers. Next up was Melbourne four piece band Pearls with their 70s inspired glam rock songs.
The Oh Mercy of old is no more as Alexander Gow has assembled a new live band that includes a drummer, keyboardist, bass guitarist and violinist. They started off the evening with "My Man" and then played the new single "Sandy," which is a fantastic song with a driving guitar and synth line throughout. The set list included songs off the upcoming album When We Talk About Love including "Without You" and "Iron Cross." We also got some old favorites such as "Keith St," "Deep Heat" and "Stay Please Stay," which Alex hopes to be on high rotation on Smooth FM one day. Towards the end of the set Alex invited his "tall and handsome friend" Paul Dempsey on stage to join him in singing a cover of The Waterboys' "The Whole Of The Moon." The band came back on and they played a cover of Echo & The Bunnymen's "The Killing Moon" before finishing the night with "Lay Everything On Me." The new songs sound great on first listen and I'm looking forward to the new album coming out in June.
Paul Dempsey's 3 Cities Tour was initially just three shows in three cities, but he added a second show in Melbourne, which is what Mary and I attended last night. This was the first of two sold out shows at the Corner Hotel. The opening act was Alexander Gow from Oh Mercy. Alex and Paul first met on the 2011 They Will Have Their Way: The Songs Of Tim And Neil Finn tour. I was super excited when he was announced as the support act because it's been over a year since we last saw Alex play live. His set list contained three new songs, including "I Am A Man," as well as old favorites "Drums," "Lady Eucalyptus," "My Man," "Deep Heat," "Get You Back" and "Keith St." Alex closed his set with an impassioned cover of The Waterboys' "The Whole Of The Moon."
As this tour is just Paul solo on acoustic guitar it has allowed him to draw on songs from his solo catalogue, material from his band Something For Kate, as well as a few new tracks. Paul was mesmerising to watch play as he sung his songs from the heart and was able to get so many different sound dynamics out of his acoustic guitar. Highlights included "Private Rain," "Ramona Was A Waitress," "Bird In A Basement," and "Asleep At The Wheel." Alex came out about half way through the set to join Paul for the Something For Kate song "Stunt Show," new Oh Mercy track "Cool Water" and a cover of The Motels' "Total Control." Paul also played a cover of David Bowie's "Ashes To Ashes" as part of the encore. Overall it was an amazing evening with two great Australian singer-songwriters.
Here's a little interview with Paul and Alex around the time of the They Will Have Their Way tour and their version of one of my favorite Crowded House songs, "Kare Kare."
One of the benefits of living in Melbourne is impromptu gigs by your favorite local bands. Although Alexander Gow from Oh Mercy has relocated to Portland, Oregon he was back in town this week being filmed for a "Where Are They Now" bit for the Qantas Spirit of Youth Awards (SOYA), which Oh Mercy won for music in 2009.
Mary, Tash and I met up after work at The Red Hummingbird to watch this intimate set by Alex solo on electric guitar. It was good to hear these Oh Mercy songs live again and stripped back, especially "Rebel Beats," "Drums," "My Man" and a particularly strong version of "Suffocated." We were also treated to a couple new songs, one about courting a woman of faith, and another called "Cool Water" which I really liked. Alex joked he sang them to prove to himself and us that he has actually done something over the past four months in the States. The set finished with an impassioned cover of The Waterboy's "Fisherman's Blues" and the title track "Deep Heat." There is a new "trans-Pacific" version of Oh Mercy about to emerge at the CMJ Music Marathon in New York City in October and hopefully some shows along the West Coast soon (I was strongly advocating for one when I am home in December- I will get you a crowd Alex!).
Here is Alex performing "Drums" solo for Tram Sessions last year:
The last two nights have been spent at the Northcote Social Club with Tash and Mary (on Thursday only) to catch the last Melbourne shows for a while by Oh Mercy before they relocate overseas. It was coined as a celebration and both evenings were a bit of an Oh Mercy fest.
The opening act was Slow Dancer (aka Simon Okely) accompanied by James Harding on bass and Myles Wootton (The Panics) on drums. They played an excellent set both nights. There is such a great groove to all of Simon's songs, especially the single "Leave It To Me" (see video below) which has been a favorite of mine since I first heard it over a year ago. I can't wait for his debut album Surrender to be released sometime this year.
Next on the bill was Alexander Gow solo on electric guitar playing some older Oh Mercy songs. He began with "Hold Out Your Hand" and "Blue Lagoon" from Great Barrier Grief. I was so thrilled to hear "Salvation Jane," which is one of my all time favorites and a b-side from one of their first singles. Interestingly it was "In Good Time" (only played on Thursday) and "By The Collar," the two Privileged Woes tracks, that sounded the strongest to me in the set. This could be because I haven't heard them live in years.
Alex did covers of songs by Kieran Ryan (Thursday) and The Panics (Friday) and Jae Laffer of The Panics returned the favor by singing his version of Oh Mercy's "Labour Of Love." Alex also invited Gossling (aka Helen Croome) onto the stage to sing their duet "La Minute De Silence," which was recorded for the Melodie Francaise album of French songs sung by Australian artists. He finished the set with the Deep Heat b-side "Lady Eucalyptus."
Here's the video for "La Minute De Silence," which was shot in Paris a couple months ago:
For Oh Mercy's set Alex returned to the stage with Rohan and began with "Europa" before Eliza and Simon joined them for "Lay Everything On Me." The set was mostly songs off Deep Heat including my favorites "Rebel Beats," "Pilgrim's Blues," "My Man," "Still Making Me Pay" and "Drums." We also got a few Great Barrier Grief tracks with "Keith St," "Stay Please Stay" and Kieran Ryan's lovely cover of "Doldrums."
The funniest moment of the two shows revolved around Simon's birthday on Thursday, which his band members completely forgot about until he announced it on stage. The reason they gave was that they did so many fake celebrations of his birthday at shows that they didn't know the actual date. To make up for it they brought out a birthday cake (complete with a penis drawn on the top) and Jagermeister shots on Friday as we all sang "Happy Birthday" to Simon.
The band was quite sentimental at both shows since these will be the last Australian shows for at least a year. Alex thanked all the familiar faces in the crowd who have supported them over the years. They finished the night with a ripping version of The Waterboys' "Fisherman's Blues" before taking a final bow on stage. It will be a new chapter for Oh Mercy with Alex and Rohan moving to the US for a while but I have
great faith that we will get their best album yet from the experience.
It was another hot day in Melbourne but that didn't deter me from heading down to The Hi-Fi Bar tonight to see Father John Misty. Luckily for me Oh Mercy was the opening band for the night. First Alex came out and did "Lady Eucalyptus" on electric guitar solo, then was joined by Rohan to play "Europa." Finally Simon and Eliza came on stage and the band launched into "Still Making Me Pay." Everyone was dressed very nicely with the boys in their various colored suits and Eliza in a black dress. The whole set was tight and unrelenting as they played songs off of Deep Heat including "Drums," "Rebel Beats," "Fever," "Pilgrim's Blues" and "My Man." They finished like they did last week with a cover of Leonard Cohen's "Memories." It was a very impressive set and the best I've seen them play in a while. If I didn't already know their music I would have been a new convert.
Father John Misty (aka Joshua Tillman) and his band came onto the stage to big cheers from the crowd and opened with "Fun Times In Babylon." I actually saw him a bit over a year ago when he was still playing drums in Fleet Foxes. Joshua is quite a charismatic front man with his unique dance moves and poses while singing. The whole set featured songs from his album Fear Fun, including my favorites "Nancy From Now On," "Only Son Of A Ladiesman," "Now I'm Learning To Love The War," and "Well, You Can Do It Without Me." The in between song banter was quite funny throughout the night and may have been aided by jet lag after the long flight to Australia. They finished the main set with an epic version of "Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings" and returned to the stage for an encore that started with the new song "I Love You, Honey Bear" before finishing with a cover of Canned Heat's "On the Road Again." Overall it was an excellent show with two very talented singer-songwriters and their bands.
Here's the video for "Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings"
After spending the morning at the gym I hopped onto a tram and headed down to the annual St. Kilda Festival. Thankfully the weather was sunny but mild, with a strong breeze coming off the bay. I grabbed some gozleme from one of the food stalls for lunch before making my way toward the front of the main stage for Oh Mercy's afternoon slot.
They started with "Stay Please Stay" and then launched into "Drums." It was great to have Simon back playing guitar with the band again. The set list consisted of many songs from their latest album Deep Heat, including excellent versions of "Rebel Beats," "Pilgrim's Blues," "My Man" and "Still Making Me Pay." Alex was full of good advice for the crowd, telling everyone not to get sunburned and also for parents to not let their children touch the water. They finished their set with a rousing rendition of Leonard Cohen's "Memories." Luckily I get to see Oh Mercy again in a week's time when they open for Father John Misty.
Mary and I found each other afterwards as she got there a bit late due to a very slow tram. We had a wander around the festival and then treated ourselves to some Dutch pancakes before heading back home.
My final fave album is actually my favorite release of 2012: Oh Mercy's Deep Heat. This is their third album and lead singer Alexander Gow took a different tack this time and wrote lyrics in the third person, which resulted in each song taking on the perspective of a different character. Steve Berlin does some amazing saxophone work throughout, particularly on "Fever" and the Roxy Music inspired "My Man." While the album is very different sonically to previous Oh Mercy releases, at the end of the day it's all about the songs, and they stand up whether played by the full band or solo on acoustic guitar. From the driving beat of "Europa" and "Deep Heat," the urgency of "Pilgrim's Blues," to the reggae sounds of "Still Making Me Pay" and the groove of "Drums" it is a great leap forward for Oh Mercy and foreshadows an exciting musical future.
Favorite Lyric: I met the Governor of California, I called him mate ("Fever")
