Boy & Bear @ Her Majesty’s Theatre, 6th September ’14
Boy & Bear are a class act and watching these likeable lads it’s hard to not be impressed and in awe with the music they play.
With an album of the calibre of Harlequin Dream these lads should be world beaters and given time I have no doubt that they will be when the rest of the world catches on to the brilliance that is Boy & Bear. Boy & Bear impressed again in Adelaide and few would have left disappointed.
Holy Holy opened proceedings and wow! These guys were great and no doubt picked up a few new fans with their mix of folk rock meets alt country. The Pacific EP was a great purchase and got a decent airing on the way home. It always makes for a great concert experience to walk away with something new to get in to and find out more about them
Her Majesty’s Theatre is almost like a second home to Boy & Bear when they play in Adelaide proving to be a more civilised affair with comfy seats and attracting a more mature crowd who wants to sit and enjoy some great music. It was a fairly low key build up once the lights dimmed and the crowd cheered as they took the stage. The set list was no great surprise with the songs that would expect to be played being played. The likes of Three Headed Women, Harlequin Dream, Old Town Blues and Southern Sun were all there in earnest.
There’s something about Rabbit Song that sounds as a great now as it did the first couple of time I heard it live at The Gov many moons ago. Boy & Bear have come along in leaps and bounds ever since. David Hosking pointed out the cruel irony of this tour which was promoted as the “Get Up & Dance Tour” fans couldn’t do that because of the seats and probably should have been retitled the “Sit Down & Listen Tour”. There was plenty of on stage banter between the band stirring up the crowd about Port Power to the weird facial expressions that Killian Gavin pulls when playing guitar.
The banjo in A Moment’s Grace was great and interestingly the band dragged out the ‘ole Crowded House chestnut Fall At Your Feet which always proves to be a crowd favourite with fans knowing all the words even singing along. The Neil Young Heart Of Gold tease midway was a great touch but damn it I wish these guys would play the full version.
Still to this day the band doesn’t play an encore and gave the crowd plenty of fore warning that end was close. There were some awesome tunes to bring the night to a close with the likes of Part Time Believer, Golden Jubilee, the awesome Southern Sun and Feeding Line. For a band that has spent the majority of the year touring here and abroad didn’t show any signs of being worn out or fatigue playing another great show in A-Town. Looking forward to seeing where Boy & Bear take things next.
Whether it is rummaging through vinyl at record stores such as Clarity and Title finding hidden gems to scouring the internet to find that album by the next big thing or chasing bands to get that elusive autograph and photo his passion is music all the way.
- Aversions Crown - January 27, 2017
- Sick Of It All - January 19, 2017
- Refused - January 11, 2017
