Gareth Liddiard - The Thornbury Theatre (6th November)

Releasing his debut solo record Strange Tourist to universal acclaim, Drones front-man Gareth Liddiard descended on Melbourne's Thornbury Theatre for a unique and intimate solo performance.

Popular music is littered with solo musicians who first came to prominence via a band: sometimes it is referred to as the artist maturing and no longer feeling the need to be amplified and loud. Arriving at the Thornbury theatre, this was most evident, because gone was the brutality of The Drones and in its place was Gareth Liddiard perched atop a stool armed with an acoustic guitar, a notebook and an amazing bunch of songs from his debut solo album Strange Tourist.

Over a 2 hour period, Gareth Liddiard showed the capacity crowd why he is regarded as one of Australia’s finest songwriters as he played his entire debut album from start to finish in an intense opening set, the only respite being his dry, hard hitting wit.

Blondin Makes An Omelette is the oldest of his solo material and a great way to get the show moving. The title track Strange Tourist was preceded by a tale about Japanese business people who go to a part of Mt Fuji to commit suicide; You Sure Ain’t Mine showcased his falsetto, which came as a big surprise for any long-term Drones fan.

To end the opening set, Gareth played the sprawling Radicalisation of D, which floored the crowd with its imagery and assault on mainstream media. As he took to his feet and headed for the dressing room, the crowd erupted and chanted for an encore. Rather than walk straight back on, as has become the custom for encores over the 2000’s ,Gareth took a well earned rest and returned after some 10 minutes.

He went in search of his set list, which had been appropriated by a fan on the front table. Without asking the fan what song was up next he launched into the first of three stripped-back Drones tracks; I am the Supercargo, quickly followed by Locust and Jezabel.

The combination of sparse guitar arrangements and a deadly quiet seated crowd allowed the lyrics to transfix the audience. It was easy to concur with the murmurings of the crowd; “Best Gig of 2010”, “How funny is he” and “He’s a genius”. I wouldn’t go as far as calling him a genius but I would say that he has made one of the best solo albums of the past few years and has the ability to pull it off live!