Live Review: Paul Kelly, Angus & Julia Stone, Alex Lahey, DD Dumbo, Angie McMahon

The weather was not on our side tonight, but we donned our ponchos, grabbed a drink and made the best of it – it was all gravy, baby.

A member of the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council presented the Welcome to Country, acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land before Angie McMahon opened the show.

Playing Missing Me, her distinctive voice grabbed the crowd’s attention. Following it up with a cover of Neil Young had the older crowd members onside and a song dedicated to eating too much lasagne won everyone else’s hearts.

Sets moved quickly due to an ugly storm delaying entry and the need to stick to curfew, so before we knew it DD Dumbo had hit the stage. Feeling a little out of place in the guitar-led line-up, his set played a bit more as ambient background noise than attention-grabbing but was enjoyable nonetheless.

Alex Lahey crushed her set. She kicked off with I Love You Like A Brother, and then veraciously cycled through hit after hit. Pausing a moment, Lahey acknowledged that Kelly didn’t have to let her play, “But Paul lets everyone play,” before she launched into Every Day’s The Weekend and ended on banger I Haven’t Been Taking Care Of Myself.

Another downpour hit, which saw the crowd seek shelter – kudos to those who remained dedicated to their spot.

When the heavens finally closed, Angus & Julia Stone graced the stage. Due to the additional delays, the pair chose to deliver a set full of hits, sticking to their more upbeat tracks to keep spirits high. The pair were as charming as ever and their onstage rapport a key part of what makes them so great. Predictably, Big Jet Plane was the set standout but Grizzly Bear also went down a treat. Chateau closed the set with as much grandeur as it began.

We had literally weathered two storms to get to this point, so anticipation was understandably high for Paul Kelly. That’s the beautiful thing about the legend though – he unites. The sheer span of his career meant multiple generations had come to cherish his music, with the many families in the crowd tonight testament to that.

A poem came over the speakers to solemnly welcome Kelly and band to the stage, whom fittingly began their show with Hasn’t It Rained. It wasn’t long before Kelly and band started dipping into the back catalogue, playing Before Too Long early in the set, much to the crowd’s delight.

At heart, Paul Kelly is a storyteller, and tonight he chose to tell us the story of Charles Perkins via A Bastard Like Me, and about love, loss and conviction through With The One I Love.

Firewood And Candles had everyone dancing, while From Little Things Big Things Grow was overshadowed by a mass heartfelt singalong. Undoubtedly, To Her Door and Dumb Things were set highlights, but it was How To Make Gravy that really stole the show.

To close the show, Kelly invited the other artists on stage to cover Darlene Love’s Christmas (Baby Please Come Home).

As everyone exited the stage, there was disappointment in the air. Thankfully, Paul Kelly and band returned to gather around the microphone, to end as solemnly as we began with a beautiful rendition of Meet Me In The Middle Of The Air, leaving us with a sense of disbelief about what we bore witness to this evening.