Review: Gary Hodges. Photos: Jason Rosewarne
At last Jack Johnson had arrived in Melbourne Australia after sold out shows in Perth, Brisbane and Sydney. Opening for Jack tonight was APRA Award singer songwriter Ziggy Alberts and Air award winning and ARIA nominated artist Emily Wurramara. They each had a great opportunity to play their own sets and sing duets with Jack later in the evening, this being the last stop on his Australian Tour.
Clearly everyone knew the sort of vibe Jack was going to bring to the ‘campfire’ (his words during the course of the evening) as well as songs from his back catalogue and his newest project “Meet The Moonlight”.
At around 8:45pm Jack and band wandered on to the stage. Straight into Brushfire Fairytales. Immediately everything slowed down. The music showcased a really slow and insistent groove. Throw in some beautiful backdrop foaming surf and cloud images and a classic lightshow, and it wasn’t too hard to work out how the evening was going to progress.
The sound was pristine and well mixed and balanced for the venue. The band were tight and supportive of each other and Jack. Each band member had an opportunity to shine in the spotlight, including a rock out accordian solo spot from the keyboard player.
Performance wise Jack alternated between electric and acoustic guitar, as well as some soloing on some bottles. His guitar playing was great. Everything band wise dedicated to a very deep groove.
The songs kept coming. Banana Pancakes. One Step Ahead (from the new album). Rodeo Clowns. The audience sang along, particularly in the big choruses, and there were plenty of those.
After a number of encores (and requests) we’d come to the end, and the campfire was starting to fade. An earthy/ accessible gig from one of the best exponents of music and storytelling.
Jack and his Green Touring entourage head out next to New Zealand, Chile and Brazil.
