As a huge fan of director David Lynch and the soundtracks he and Angelo Badalamenti composed for his film and tv work, I was really excited to get the opportunity to hear these songs interpreted live. In Dreams: David Lynch Revisited brought together an array of artists under the musical direction of David Coulter to perform tracks from throughout Lynch's career. Onagh joined me for tonight's second and final show at the Melbourne Recital Centre where we had very close second row seats.
The evening began in a very Lynchian way with David Coulter in a sequenced jacket and long red gloves sawing into a log. Sophia Brous did an amazing a capella version of "Llorando (Crying)" from Mulholland Drive, and was later joined by Kirin J Callinan for a unique interpretation of "Blue Velvet." It was the Twin Peaks tracks though that I was really eager to hear, and thankfully many of them featured throughout the night. Cibo Matto did a raucous version of "A Real Indication," Sarah Blasko sang the two Julee Cruise tracks "The Nightingale" and "Into The Night" before being joined on stage by Sophia and Kirin for "Just You and I" (with Kirin at his creepy/charming best). Violinist Owen Pallett sang the iconic "Falling," Sophia performed Jimmy Scott's "Sycamore Trees," and harpist Marshall McGuire played "Laura Palmer's Theme," which was both haunting and beautiful.
Camille O'Sullivan had fantastic outfits for both her numbers, and I really enjoyed her version of "Song To The Siren" from Lost Highway. Mick Harvey and the band did a thumping version of "Ghost Of Love" from Inland Empire, before Sophia joined him for a duet of Chris Isaak's "Wicked Game" with Owen, Camille and Kirin on backing vocals. As David thanked everyone who participated in this tribute show, the band finished the night with "Dance Of The Dream Man." Overall it was a pretty impressive evening and such a privilege to see all these fantastic artists perform together on the same stage.
It's Australia Day today so Onagh and I took advantage of having the day off to catch up and do a couple things. First off we went to the NGV to see Lullaby Movement featuring Sophia Brous and special guests Leo Abrahams and David Coulter. This work was originally commissioned by Urban Theatre Projects for Bankstown: Live as part of the Sydney Festival 2015. It featured Sophia exploring the melodies and multi-layered meaning of lullabies, drawn from migrant families in Bankstown. There were lots of children in the audience for the half-hour performance in the Great Hall, and Sophia alternated between performing in the crowd and on the stage. It was lovely to hear these lullabies sung in different languages, and always great to see Sophia perform (I'm hopeful she will release some new music soon).
Next we headed to the Kino Cinemas for an afternoon showing of the movie Birdman. The film stars Michael Keaton as Riggin Thomson, a washed up famous Hollywood actor who starred in the Birdman movie franchise. To revive his career he decides to write, direct and star in an adaptation of a Raymond Carver short story on Broadway. The movie covers the rehearsals and preview performances of the play leading up to opening night as well as Thomson's battles against the voice of Birdman, which torments him throughout. The staccato jazz drumming in the score really adds to the pace and feel of the film. Keaton is great in a role that seems to parallel his own career, and I thought Edward Norton as Thomson's acting nemesis Mike Shiner gave an absolutely standout performance. All the accolades are definitely deserved for this film and if you haven't seen it already go check it out.
After a relaxing tapas dinner along the waterfront at Byblos, Amrita, her husband and sister and I walked along Southbank to the Arts Centre to see Brous play at The Famous Spiegeltent. Wearing a fantastic hot pink dress she started the evening with "Little Ticket." For this show Sophia had her regular band along with some special guests including Dan Luscombe (The Drones), Mick Harvey and Evelyn Morris (Pikelet). She played mostly new songs (some just recently written) as well as "Streamers" and "Oh My Brother" from her EP. Mick joined her on guitar for "Southern Belle" and "Small Hands" and Evelyn came out to play on a beautiful song that I think was called "Lulu." Sophia's voice and vocal range were amazing throughout the night and she finished her hour long set with another new one titled "Of The Causeway." Hopefully her debut album will be released this year and if the new songs are any indication is should be a great one.
Another year is coming to a close which can only mean one thing- time for all those end of year top ten lists. Not to be left out, here are my top ten favorite songs for 2011 (aka songs that make me want to hit repeat after having just listened to them).
10. Slow Dancer "Leave It To Me" Slow Dancer is the solo project of Simon Okely from Oh Mercy. "Leave It To Me" is the first song he has put up online and I really love the laid back feel to Simon's music as well as his excellent guitar playing. Definitely one to watch for 2012.
9. The Good China "No More Maps, No More Roads"
2011 saw the return of The Good China to the Melbourne live scene after nearly a year's hiatus. The single "No More Maps, No More Roads" was a live favorite and has all the great hallmarks of a Good China track, including lots of hand claps.
8. Boy & Bear "Feeding Line"
It has been a monster year for Sydney's Boy & Bear, having won 5 ARIA awards for their debut album Moonfire. "Feeding Line" was the first single off the album, and signaled a new musical direction for the band from their previous EP.
7. The Harpoons "Keep You Around"
Another favorite band of mine that reemerged this year was The Harpoons. "Keep You Around" showcases Bec Rigby's soulful voice in this song about love with the great lyric "when you smiled at me I was a hopeless case." I am definitely looking forward to their debut album coming out in 2012.
6. Liam Finn "Don't Even Know Your Name"
This song was not a single but it's my favorite track off Liam Finn's latest album FOMO. "Don't Even Know Your Name" has a driving beat and an optimistic energy to it, and I absolutely love the chorus (which for some reason reminds me of "Panic" by The Smiths). Here's a live version of song, but do seek out the album track.
5. Brous "Streamers"
The first single off of Brous' self-titled debut EP, "Streamers" sounds like a song from a 1960s James Bond film. Sophia Brous' voice is quite amazing and I love how the first verse of this song keeps speeding up. There is a definite cinematic quality to her music and it will be interesting to see what she produces next.
4. Seeker Lover Keeper "Even Though I'm A Woman" Seeker Lover Keeper is the female Australian supergroup made up of Sarah Blasko, Sally Seltmann and Holly Throsby. One of the initial singles off of their self-titled debut album, "Even Though I'm A Woman" is a song about long distance love sung by Holly and written by Sally with some biting lyrics such as "I love you more when I'm missing you, it's why I'm always away." The song is a bit of an anthem for female independence.
3. Kimbra "Cameo Lover" Kimbra is originally from New Zealand but has been living in Melbourne the past few years. "Cameo Lover" come off of her debut album Vows and won her the 2011 Vanda and Young Songwriting Competition as well as an ARIA award for best female artist. I love the contrast between the verses and chorus of this song as well as its fantastic video.
2. Gotye "State Of The Art"
You may have thought that I would pick Gotye's biggest hit to date, but no, my favorite song off of his latest album Making Mirrors is "State Of The Art." Only Wally would write a song about his beloved Lowrey Cotillion organ. My favorite part of the song is when the bossa nova rhythm kicks in to the lyric "start the bossa nova beat and limbo from the living to the kitchen." The video animation by Rubber House is also exceptional.
1. Oh Mercy "Stay Please Stay"
My most played song of the year is Oh Mercy's "Stay Please Stay," the first single off their second album Great Barrier Grief. I absolutely adore the chorus of this song, especially Thomas Savage's beautiful jangly guitar. It also has a great closing lyric by Alexander with "what can I do with a love that gathers dust in a busy room?" An indie pop classic.
Last night I headed down to the recently opened Phoenix Public House (formerly The Spot) on Sydney Road for Brous' sold out EP launch. First on the bill was American born actress and singer Jane Badler and The Give. She played a couple songs from her albums and did a cover of Kylie Minogue's "Can't Get You Out Of My Head."
Next up was Lost Animal, who were a bit delayed in starting due to technical difficulties. Featuring Jarrod Quarrell on lead vocals and keyboard, and Shags Chamberlain on bass, they played an interesting set of music that also utilized instrumental samples from a computer. I liked Jarrod's vocal delivery and enjoyed quite a few of their songs, including "Say No To Thugs" and "Lose The Baby."
Soon the voices of La Voce Della Luna filled the room. Performing in a space at the side of the venue, this amazing intergenerational choral group of 30 or so Italian women sang traditional songs in Italian accompanied by an accordion and tambourine. Sophia Brous even came out and joined them for "Bella Ciao." Unfortunately there were people talking at the bar while they sang, which made it a bit difficult to hear. However I found them very entertaining and they nearly stole the show.
Sophia Brous and her band then entered the stage and started their set with the current single off her EP "Little Ticket." Sophia was wearing this great blue long sleeve dress with pearl and gold buttons down the front. They played all the songs from the EP as well as a few new ones, with "Streamers," "Way Up On The River" and "Oh My Brother" being highlights. Sophia has an amazing and powerful voice and she alternated between two microphones- one normal and one with an echo effect. Sophia also sang a duet with Conrad Standish from the band Devastations, who was DJing for the evening. All in all I was quite impressed and the current buzz around Brous is definitely justified. I look forward to catching her playing live again soon.
Here is the video for her first single "Streamers":
