Boy and Bear at The State Theatre, Sydney

Sophie Metcalfe reviewed and photographed Boy and Bear's gig in Sydney last week:

It has been a while since I’ve been to an all-ages gig. I think we can all agree that the all-ages plaque is usually an instant repellent for anyone who’s post teen. An environment involving small greasy things with underdeveloped limbs prodding our sides and screaming ‘I love you’ toward the stage. But, if there’s anybody thinking of enduring such a crowd – then The State Theatre is the place to be.
No wait - Boy and Bear at The State Theatre is the place to be.

It was great to be in an atmosphere where the excitement started from the opening song of the first act. Tin Sparrow began with their chai scented folk like a welcoming hug. Following this was Jungle Giants and although I usually switch off when any Vampire Weekendesque indie-rock comes my way – I actually caught myself bopping along somewhat pleased! By the time Boy and Bear came on, the excitable young things, the palatial setting and the man walking around selling candy and ice cream had seduced me. So no matter what went down I had already given this night a thumbs-up.

Opening with Rabbit Song – the boys quickly reminded us why we were all there. Grabbing our attention with flawless harmonies and a fluid light display, Boy and Bear had captured the attention of everyone in their hot little hands. One thing to be said in particular is that they have a great onstage presence. Engaging in banter that isn’t flawlessly witty, but rather a relaxed and goober-esque interchange between mates, it made you feel like you were in their garage drinking their dads' Coopers and just having your usual Sunday night session. They have a knack however, of going straight from having this grand old chinwag to slipping into a beautifully executed, intimate minor melody.

They glided through an impeccable set which was sprinkled with heckles from girls ranging from ‘marry me Dave’ to ‘I love you’ and there was even a sneaky ‘fuck me’. By the time the set got to Feeding Line, the girls were out of their seats and lining the walls of the theatre; everyone had fallen in love with
them all over again. There was an endearing little spiel about how they don’t like the idea of encores and then told us of their ‘mock-encore’, which involves pretending to leave the stage. Dave shoots one last heart melting glance to the audience, the girls scream a little more and then they play their ACTUAL last song.

Thank you Boy and Bear – for pulling a cynic out of her depths and giving her a truly fantastic, light-hearted night at the theatre.

Words and photographs by Sophie Metcalfe.

Caitlin Park at FBi Social, Sydney

CAITLIN PARK 
TIN SPARROW 
FLUME 
FBi Social, Kings Cross Hotel, Sydney, 22/09/11

Flume, one of Caitlin Park's fellow finalists in the recent FBi Northern Lights competition, got things moving with dancy electronica built with a laptop and plenty of knob-twiddling. It's easy to see this youngster carving a niche for himself. Next up, the impressively hirsute Tin Sparrow changed the tone a little with their bouncy, country-tinged folk. The five-piece had an affable, disarming stage presence, while their set was varied and had a good pace to it. The upbeat numbers got feet tapping, while, when they slowed things down, they managed to bring an otherwise chatty room to silence. Highlights included Eileen and For You from their EP, From The Sun, and the band even managed to squeeze in a surprise chorus of Happy Birthday for lead singer Matt Amery. Lovely stuff.

Caitlin Park (pictured, top) took to the stage looking delightful in a pretty dress and thick-rimmed glasses, and set about delivering songs from Milk Annual, the album she was there to launch. With one foot firmly in folk, the other in electronica, her songs were are intricately and beautifully pieced together using a loop pedal, an acoustic guitar, samples, snippets of dialogue and a drummer. Managing to remain interesting yet accessible to a live audience is a hard thing to achieve, yet her brand of folk with whispers of electronica was mesmerising from first song to last. Importantly, she was able to layer her songs while retaining a lo-fi quality. There was nothing messy, nothing superfluous here. Would You Let Me Back In was a fine example of this and also showed just what a good lyricist she is, while Baby Teeth proved that she also has the ability to deliver a catchy vocal hook or two.

While measured and intelligent, there was also an impish edge to her, which was best illustrated by the decision to throw in a cover of The Fresh Prince Of Bel Air theme tune. To take such an awesome, stupid song and to slow it right down and re-contextualise in a kind of Americana folk direction was impressive indeed and brought a big reaction from the busy room. Understated, nuanced and utterly captivating, Caitlin Park's music offers something different to anything else on the Sydney scene at the moment. Simply, she is a breath of fresh air.

Review by Bobby Townsend. It originally appeared in Sydney's Drum Media