Live Review: Sun Kil Moon

As The Bakery grinds to a halt and looks back on many years of fine service, it would be difficult to find a performer whose reputation comes as heavily loaded as Mark Kozelek’s. Appearing tonight under the guise of Sun Kil Moon, Kozelek is a moody and occasionally irreverent performer, one who engages with his audience as often as he ostracises it. The release of 2014’s universally acclaimed Benji saw the spotlight shift firmly on him, having spent years skirting its edge with influential band Red House Painters, and it was hardly surprising that this rare appearance in Perth was a sell-out. Though his recent output has centred largely on music underpinned by classical guitar work, he spent the lion’s share of this set providing his musical contribution on a barely audible floor tom and hi-hat. Thankfully, two accompanying musicians were there to carry the load on drums and keyboard, but the absence of Kozelek’s guitar for the majority of the night was disappointing.

Ever fond of appropriating popular songs and churning them into something else entirely, he played a magnificent rendition of Send In The Clowns, his unique baritone charging the track with even more despair and loneliness than the original and highlighting the strong emotional pull his vocals are capable of having. Soon after this came his unashamed attack on the beer swilling rock of The War On Drugs with War On Drugs: Suck My Cock, a seemingly throwaway song that has now taken on a life of its own. When he did pull out the guitar it was a treat, a sublime coming together of rolling classical guitar and piano that was stunningly beautiful and made you lament its sporadic appearances. Between songs he spoke at length with the audience, touching on his love of boxing and the shirt he’d bought in Perth that day as a souvenir, and routinely pulled crowd members on stage to share vocal or drumming duties. At a tick under three hours it was a long show, and one that felt even longer, but it was marked by moments of brilliance, such as the touching I Can’t Live Without My Mother’s Love. Overall it wasn’t a dazzling show by any stretch, but it’s fair to say there’s no one else capable of delivering a performance such as this.