Recent fluxes of ‘intimate rock’ bands seem to have justly captured the hearts of Australia’s sensitive listeners, arming their guitars with reflections on life, heartache and of course love. This movement has now been further developed into an art concept of its own entity: The Divine Blue Project. The project is a musical endeavour intended to document philosophies and experiences of front man and project creator Simon Moro.

Intrigued by the elusive concept, I made my way to St. Kilda’s Espy Hotel to see The Divine Blue Project in action. The Gershwin Room hosted a modest but appreciative crowd, whose initial hesitance to approach the performance area was understandable given the unusually elongated layout of the venue!

Grandma Death supported The Divine Blue Project, providing the mingling few with some seriously interesting fusion music – a kind of Radiohead meets REM balancing act. Compelling as this initially was, the end of the gig got a little stale; particularly during the final stretch of a lengthy experimental song detailing the mental workings of an orgasm. This withstanding, Grandma Death is an act to look out for, no doubt capable of producing a fascinating album. The changeover between bands was swift, and shortly after Grandma Death’s final instalment a smiley Divine Blue Project took to the stage.

The band dove straight into their set, staving off applause between the opening two numbers ‘Falling Is Easy’ and ‘Burning Venus’, which were incredibly well matched and bled effectively into each other; a point of interest in Moro’s songwriting was his intertwining of phrasing and melodies throughout each song to serve as a kind of thread for the Divine Blue Project concept. Fortified percussion by Josh Geoghegan and an impressive keyboard arrangement by Cam Crawford served as a means of momentum through the early set, which would have lifted the roof were it not for a distracting sense of caution from the rest of the band. While each performance was sound, the band weren’t delivering with any distinct energy. Moro’s vocals were enjoyable but ultimately safe; initially lacking the passionate expression that he later delivered his compelling lyrics with.

It wasn’t until Divine Blue Project were well into their third song, ‘Hoping For Love’ , that they began to unveil the potential of Moro’s elevating songwriting. Their sound teetered between rambunctious rock and simple keyboard ballads, uniquely mixing the guitar driven sound of Snow Patrol with beautiful acoustic harmonies strikingly similar to The Postal Service . Sharing a thought or two after the performance, Moro revealed his main inspiration for this fusion of sound to be “Life, Love and Passion…It’s all about now and tomorrow. I want to sound like tomorrow, or at very least, today.” Though his lyrics appear largely retrospective, there is nothing longing about the optimistic music. The audience certainly seemed to appreciate this hopeful concept, and were highly responsive to The Divine Blue Project’s performance as it progressed.

By the second half of the set, the band had well and truly warmed into their space and were delivering the songs with the energy they deserved earlier. James Young on second guitar/vocals and Kristoff Lajoie on the bass motivated this energy forward, working the rest of the band (and the audience!) effortlessly. Moro, a former break-dancer, even managed to bust a move or two. It would have been great to see the band’s newest member Dean Gourley stand his ground a little more confidently on the keyboard/backing vocals, which I’m sure will come as he finds his feet with the band.

A performance of particular note was ‘Ten Umbrellas’ , sending a roar of approval through the audience. Obviously a crowd favourite, the rock ballad highlighted Crawford’s solid keyboard skill which beautifully complimented some wonderful harmonies. ‘Come For Me’ also indulged similar harmonies in an uplifting acapella bridge, which resembled the evocative composition of Sigur Rós . Specific mention must go to the lighting designer and technician, Alex Mason , who produced some terrific lighting plots (and seamless changes!) which added indefinitely to the entire performance.

Finally, the powerful ‘Don’t Leave Your Light On’ saw the Divine Blue Project at its best for the evening. Moro produced enchanting vocals and falsettos comparable to Jeff Buckley, while the twins on strings continued to delight us with their natural humour and energy. This liveliness transformed some potentially cringe-worthy moments (during which the supporting vocalists struggled to hold their harmonies) into a playful and endearing atmosphere the audience wholeheartedly participated in. At this point it became clear that we were witnessing a bunch of mates having fun playing together – it was wonderfully void of any pretension and made for an uplifting night.