Independent Aussie singer songwriter Lior took to the stage at The Governor Hindmarsh a day ahead of the release of Heal Me, the first single from his forthcoming second album Corner Of An Endless Road. Presumably, as the first stop on his brief promotional tour, this made the Adelaide crowd among the first in the country to sample his new material. If their reaction is any indication, Lior has another cracking good album on his hands.
Supporting Lior on this leg of his jaunt was local eccentric Vorn Doolette. Battling against the sort of apathy unknown supporting artists can usually expect, Doolette made a low key start before emptying his bag of attention seeking tricks on an audience that was slowly but surely won over by his sense of humour and brash observations.
Accompanying himself on acoustic guitar, Doolette has a bit of the Arlo Guthries about him, weaving elaborate and amusing stories into a quirky folkie tapestry. A bold and entertaining performer, Doolette cheekily lampooned the headliner before ending his set with the trio of songs from his MySpace page.
Lior was then enthusiastically welcomed to the stage by what must have been a near-capacity Governor Hindmarsh crowd. Kicking things off with two new tracks, Jerusalem and Sleeping in the Rain, Lior quickly acknowledged typical desires for old material and launched into obvious crowd favourite Daniel.
A cracking rendition of Sitting With A Stranger followed, reminding that Lior isn’t only about achingly delicate vocals and joyous lullabies. This and the rollicking Diego & The Village Girl gave the band a chance to stretch themselves, with guitarist Ben Fink, bassist Brett Hirst and drummer Michael Iveson all giving good accounts of themselves.
Most of the crowd joined in on a sing-along rendition of breakthrough single This Old Love, while a massive reception was reserved for Autumn Flow. Delicate ballads Take The Sting Out and I’ll Forget You from the new record also provoked enthusiastic responses. By the time the dust had settled on set closer and new single Heal Me, the verdict on the new material was fairly clearly in favour of the artist.
The first encore was the haunting Bedouin Song, which came with a promise. Anyone attempting to give the song an Australian Idol-type touch down would be ejected from the venue. Rightly so, too. This was followed by an impromptu second encore with the band, an energetic performance of Building Ships.
What makes Lior such an enjoyable entertainer to watch is the obvious enjoyment he gets out of performing. The new songs previewed at the Gov only added to the breadth of his material, and with some sold-out eastern seaboard shows lined up, Lior looks set to be one of this summer’s must-see shows.
