The Tiger and Me - From a Liar to a Thief

Melbourne sextet, The Tiger and Me, are a group of little-known newcomers, having only formed in 2007. With the release of debut album 'From a Liar to a Thief,' they have sent a firmly worded message that little-known is a trait that they won't possess for too much longer, as Max Easton writes.

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Gypsy music, to use an extremely loose term, has seen an unprecedented rise in popularity in Australia over the past few years. This modern take on Eastern European folk music has cemented itself in the Australian festival scene, with acts like Waiting For Guiness, the Barons of Tang and Juke Baritone & The Swamp Dogs all taking their own quirk on the genre and garnering a loyal following in their respective cities and towns. And now, with the release of debut album 'From a Liar to a Thief,' Melbourne six-piece The Tiger and Me have introduced themselves as another great addition to this stable of acts. 

But what exactly is this brand of music? It's all well and good to start sprouting out words like gypsy and cabaret, but all that really means in a literal sense is a travelling group of extravagant late-night stage performers...which could just as well describe an aging stripper with an elaborate closet and a Commodore as it does a form of music. This genre is a broad one, a place wherein a group of talented musicians take a modern approach to classical instrumentation such as horns, strings, accordion, banjo, upright bass and mandolin. It's a place where bluegrass meets jazz through latter day folk-rock influences, all of which come together to form The Tiger and Me's 'From a Liar to a Thief', a record that is as good a release as anything in the genre today.

'From a Liar to a Thief' is a portrait of many ages. There's an unmistakable sense of an era past amongst the obvious European influence, but it's certainly no historical record. With altered arrangements and instrumentation, it could just as easily have been released as an indie-pop record, but it wouldn't have been half as good. There's a jovial atmosphere that runs through the more upbeat moments like that of 'The Circus or the Zoo,' and a haunting subtlety behind the sombre tracks such as 'Lady Grey.' In fact, this atmosphere and ability to balance the upbeat with the chilled is probably 'From a Liar to a Thief's' biggest achievement. The tracks are arranged not only brilliantly within themselves, but laid across the album to great consequence. It takes the strengths of each individual track and places them in their most appropriate bind either side of them, which is a trait becoming less and less prevalent with the crossover to the .mp3 era.

The Tiger and Me's strength comes from pure and simple merriment. It's a jovial romp through a jovial underworld, where stories of hookers, harlots and charlatans cross drunken sing-a-longs. Yes, the album can be pretty typical in parts, but it's very much a genre record. There won't be too much interest coming from singles off the album, but the record in its entirety and the accompanying live performances are surely what The Tiger and Me are all about. This album is something you should definitely get your hands on if you have any inclination towards this brand of music, it's a great illustration of this underground trend in Australian music and is no doubt one of the gems to have come from that scene.