#20 Angus and Julia Stone, The Civic

15 December 2017

Upstairs at the Civic, it's been a few years since I have had the panoramic view of the theatre in all its charm. And a packed house brings with it a sense of anticipation that its opulence intensifies. 

The night before the gig I thought I would just be seeing Voiceclub this week, but then the birthday angel delivered us two tickets to Angus and Julia Stone. So I spent today on Spotify getting to know them better and by 5 o'clock I was pretty damn grateful to Linda and Mia for the tickets. 

The Teskey Brothers opened, with a set that was both original and straight out of Motown. They're seriously accomplished musicians blending soul and blues, and the crowd were well and truly warmed up by the end of their set.

I'm beginning to think that there is something about New Zealand audiences that genuinely takes an interest in the support acts, certainly the Teskeys were well pleased with the reception in their first performance here (much like Garrett Cato at the Frazey Ford show, only magnified by a factor of 30). 

Angus and Julia Stone make me think that Emmylou Harris and Paul Kelly got together and went all indie. There's a bit of folk and alt-country and with some complex layering going on as well. The show was captivating from beginning to end. A good chunk of the songs were from the latest Snow album, but this wasn't one of those occasions where everyone wants the old stuff. Snow is such a compelling album, any song off it is a treat. Chateau, Cellar Door, Nothing Else and My House Your House were all delivered to a welcoming audience, along with the older songs like Heart Beats Slow and Big Jet Plane (a love song Angus wrote to a girl who picked him up hitchhiking to a festival). 

Snow concluded the main performance, and Santa Monica Dream brought down the curtain. 

Given that just over a day earlier I had no idea about the show, or if I'm honest the two siblings, the Friday night became one to treasure.