The Whitlams - The Tivoli (September 4)

On the night of Brisbane's Riverfire and Powderfinger's first final show in Brisbane, The Whitlams brought 'Not Their Final Tour Either' to town, playing to a packed house at the Tivoli Theatre.

Opening the night was fellow Sydneysider Perry Keyes, bringing his own brand of conscious Aussie rock, with no shortage of nostalgia crammed into a short 20-odd minutes, accompanied for much of the brief set by a guitarist, bass player and The Whitlams' Terepai Richmond joining in on drums.

With the iconic Sydney group set to take an extended break as Tim Freedman prepares a solo album, The Whitlams brought no shortage of crowd-pleasers over the course of nearly two hours. You realise pretty quickly that you're witnessing an impeccably tight band backing one of Australia's sharpest songwriters, yet it's as much Freedman's wit and charisma that wins over the crowd as it is his hefty back-catalogue.

Between showings of such favourites as Made Me Hard, You Sound Like Louis Burdett and I Make Hamburgers, Freedman told tales while keeping his vocal chords well lubricated with a never-ending glass of wine, offering his own candid views on everything from the ongoing election to the ridiculousness of hundreds of thousands of Brisbanites gathering to watch a jet dump burning fuel above them. Freedman sprung a unrecorded gem on the crowd, prefaced as a song about Peter Brown, the band's Tasmanian bipolar, homosexual, homeless astrologer back in 1994.

Meanwhile it was somber moments such as the touching Blow Up The Pokies that left the Tivoli silent with awe, but not before Freedman lightened the mood with a new opening verse to the song hastily written by drummer Terepai Richmond. An audience singalong for the haunting Buy Now Pay Later (Charlie No. 2) created a certain energy that could only be found in such an intimate venue.

Inviting Perry Keyes up for the encore to perform one of his own songs accompanied only by Freedman on keys was an interesting move but one that paid off, Freedman giving the crowd an opportunity to perhaps better appreciate the singer than they could in the typically restless environment of a support slot and highlighting the obvious admiration and connection both performers share. What followed was a solid encore and second encore with the rest of the band that closed out the night -- and indeed a chapter in The Whitlams' storied history as Freedman sets about shifting gears for a solo jaunt.

The Whitlams are still on the road for their 'Not Their Final Tour Either' run of shows. Dates can be seen here.