I arrived at the Enmore Theatre on a warm Thursday evening, greeted by an equally warm venue (air conditioning problems!), and a crowd who were enjoying Sydney’s Mental As Anything – who opened up what was essentially a triple bill, the eccentric group playing through a good selection of their hits.
Come to this of it, it would be fair to call the entire evening one of “eccentric 80s music” – and the crowd couldn’t have been more excited to hear all the classics – including yours truly. In particular, the tracks “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)” and “I’m On My Way” by the second act, The Proclaimers, have been staples in my karaoke diet for many years now, and I was more than enthralled to see them played live. One of those “never thought this would happen” sort of moments.
Like many in the room, however, my knowledge of the band stopped dead at those two tracks – so it came with great relief that they played both – finishing the night with 500 Miles, which they dedicated to the crowd – and it did not disappoint.
The rest of the set was surprisingly satisfying as well – they opened the set with their recent single, “Notes and Rhymes” in which they proclaim their love of Rock and Roll; it served to be a catchy way to start off proceedings. “Let’s Get Married”, “Then I Met You” and “Life With You” were other golden moments. “Then I Met You” in particular, with superb guitar and pianos solos thrown in to make the crowd go “oh, right, these guys can actually play!” alongside being an incredibly easy singalong track – even if you don’t know the lyrics!
Overall, I was impressed by The Proclaimers – They proved to us all that they’re more than a “one hit wonder” band – showing why they’ve survived on the touring circuit for so many years. And I think it goes without saying that after hearing “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)” live… well, karaoke will never quite be the same.
With Australia and the U.K. representing the opening acts respectively, it was fitting that on the American day of Thanksgiving, we had some Yanks to finish it off. And if the first two acts weren’t eccentric enough for you, The B52s are just about as eccentric as you can get in 80s music … modern music … just about ALL music, really. From “Roam” to “Love Shack”, set closer “Rock Lobster” and everything in between, this is a band who know how to make a song fun – and they know how to translate this in the live setting too – surrounded by a stage draped in light and colour.
This was my second time having the pleasure of seeing the band – my first experience taking place last year in London. Unfortunately, this Sydney show proved a bit of a let down by comparison. Cindy Wilson left the stage early in the set due to dehydration, leaving Kate Pierson to take up both melodies. To her credit, being the stronger voice of the two, she did so with ease and style, and at times made you forget there was a harmony missing at all. But with their famous melodies so important for tracks like “Roam”, it was hard to ignore at the same time. Meanwhile, the sound of the venue, which so often is far from perfect, chose to be much the same during the B52s set. The volume was way too loud, and the balance between instrument and voices were way off. A pity considering the preceding acts had sounded just fine.
I don’t think many others would have complained, however. This was fantastic fun despite the aforementioned problems, and the crowd were chanting for their return long after the curtain closed. Appropriately, Fred Schneider opened up proceedings proclaiming: “Let’s lift back the curtain of time and see who’s undressing!” – just one of his many fantastic (now famous) one liners throughout the night. It’s just a pity the curtain only partially lifted for Sydney fans.
PHOTOS BY JOHNNY AU – TAKEN AT THE HUNTER VALLEY SHOW.
A Day on the Green – Bimbadgen Estate – Saturday 21st November 2009.
