Live Review: George Ezra, Eves Karydas

On the first leg of his Australian tour, beloved English singer-songwriter George Ezra was everything you could have wanted and more. Red Hill Auditorium was absolutely brimming with people when support act Eves Karydas took the stage. 

Karydas has indisputably made a splash in the Australian music scene over the past few months. She’s supported the likes of The Wombats and Dua Lipa, joined the line-up for Falls Festival and announced her own headline tour of Australia in September. Her music is lively, rhythmic and inherently catchy. However, Karydas’s live performance is a work in a progress. She’s undeniably a talented artist, but she lacked the energy and enthusiasm on stage that these songs demand.  

After what seemed like an eternity, George Ezra ran out onto the stage with a contagious grin that didn’t leave his face for the duration of the show. You’ve honestly never seen an artist so genuinely thrilled to be on stage. Despite the success he’s seen since the release of his debut album Wanted On Voyage in 2014, it’s as though he cannot believe he is playing a show in a country far from home to an audience that knows his songs word for word. 

Accompanied by a six-piece band, Ezra opened with the feel-good track Don’t Matter Now. This didn’t invigorate the crowd quite the way you would have hoped for the beginning of a show, but he certainly made up for it later, following with Get Away, Barcelona and Pretty Shining People. 

Between songs, Ezra told the audience about a month he spent in Barcelona and his decision to stay with a girl named Tamara, who he met over the internet. This is where the inspiration for his second album came from, song lyrics and all. Ezra’s little anecdotes throughout the show gave you insight to Ezra not only as an artist but as a person.

The true magic behind Ezra’s performance, however, is that it is gloriously old-fashioned. There was a vast array of instruments that were used throughout the show, including violin, trumpet and trombone. The band interchanged between their instruments and singing back up, which was a nice addition that you seem to rarely see on stage anymore. The entire show was simply a man and his band, ready to play a bit of music for some people who were willing to listen. 

Ezra rounded off his performance with his 2014 hit Budapest. The audience sang loudly and extremely off key, much to Ezra’s amusement. With what was supposed to be the end of the show, Ezra and the band left the stage, waving goodbye to the crowd as they went. But it wasn’t the end. They returned almost as quickly as they had left and proceeded to play a two-song encore, consisting of crowd-favourite Cassy O’ and huge single Shotgun. 

Many people in the crowd had evidently been anticipating Shotgun, and they were not disappointed. It left you buzzing with energy, passion and eager for more. With his modesty and charm, Ezra won the hearts of the hundreds in attendance.