It is always weird walking into Brisbane Entertainment Centre with the top tiers of the grandstand curtained off, a dismal reminder of Brisbane’s need for a decent indoor, mid size venue like good old Festival Hall. Nonetheless, spirits were high amongst the crowd all eager to revel in the joy of the Missy Higgins show. Higgins was supported by Tim Rogers and New Buffalo.
New Buffalo, a.k.a. Sally Seltmann, took to the stage in a hue of blue light accompanied by multi-instrumentalist, simply introduced as Jessica. Bopping straight into her set with City and Sea (Lady Nameless) Seltmann and her unique brand of lyrical pop were engulfed by the enormity of the stage. The intimacy that her music demands was lost to the vastness of the arena. Comparisons to Regina Spektor’s vocals weren’t difficult to overlook but Steltmann’s quirky melodies and whimsical lyrics stood well on their own. Highlights included the hauntingly beautiful Misery and Mountains, Arrows and Bows and It’s True. However, Cheer Me Up Thank You featured an Enya style backing track which overtook the sweet lyrics and made the song hover on the edge of cringe-worthy.
Tim Rogers seemed an odd choice as touring mate for Missy Higgins given that their fan bases are so different. Rogers, however, is the consummate performer with his wild hip thrusting, arm flailing dance moves and sharp wit the audience couldn’t help but be won over. Dressed completely in white with his shirt unbuttoned to his midriff and scarf tied in his hair Rogers announced that he used all his bad language backstage so “there will be none of that today”. A concession undoubtedly made for all the young Higgins fans with parents in tow.
The set was kicked off with Jimmy’s Delicate Condition and followed up with the always popular Wild One and the self proclaimed “destined to be a hit” Goodnight My Boys to name but a few. The Luxury of Hysteria was mesmerising, particularly the exquisite cello denouement played by Melanie Robinson. The final song of the set, a cover of John Lennon’s Shine On, allowed Rogers and his band to really shine if you’ll forgive the pun. Brisbane’s own Danny Widdicombe (guitar/backing vox), Ian Kitney (Drums), Pete Lawler a.k.a. Dr Punk (bass/backing vox) and 67 Special’s Louis Macklin (keys) had the audience dancing in their seats as Rogers and his band wrapped up an exceptional set. The only drawback of the whole performance was the poor mixing levels which sometimes blew out Lawler’s backing vocals and occasionally the bass overpowered the rest of the band. Lighting, as with the New Buffalo set was poor with magenta the primary light for the majority of their time on stage. Regardless of these minor drawbacks Rogers rockin’ performance will undoubtedly have won some new fans.
Missy Higgins, the darling of the night, began the set with three chandeliers lowered above a grand piano as she emerged from the darkness to thunderous applause. Launching straight into Any Day Now the barefoot songstress did not disappoint proving that her vocal were just as strong live as they are in the studio. The black curtain masking the back half of the stage dropped and revealed Higgins’ sizable band which consisted of Gerrad Masters (keys), Dave Symes (bass), Terepai Richmond (drums), Phil Slater (trumpet), Ben Edgar (guitar), Stephanie Zacha (violin/xylophone), Luc Mollick (Viola) and Danielle Bentley (cello). The kinship between the band and Higgins was obvious with her playful ribbing and teasing. “It’s the Missy show” she jibed in a mock diva tone.
Despite the jovial banter on stage, musically the evening took a solemn turn with the songs Forgive Me, Don’t Ever, Sound of White, Leave a Note and a spectacular rendition of Powderfinger’s These Days. This section of the set was especially moving and was the standout of the evening. Older hits like The Special Two and Scar had the crowd chanting the lyrics as Higgins encouraged the audience to sing along to the latter saying, “you sound like The Choir of Hard Knocks”. The highly charged Peachy, which Higgins claims really gets all her aggression out, was another highlight of the set as Higgins let rip on guitar.
Refreshingly Higgins stated that she would not be performing an encore because she didn’t want to lie and go backstage and pretend that she would only come back on if the crowd chanted loudly for an encore. She said, “Don’t think you’re getting gypped either because this is what we … just pretend we went off just then and came back on again”. The mock encore featured Where I Stood and concluded with Higgins, by way of introduction, encouraging her fans to take control of their lives and Steer. Higgins and her band then linked arms and bowed theatre style to the cheering crowd before leaving the stage. The audience left the Brisbane Entertainment Centre on a high having witness a stellar performance from Higgins, no doubt proving that she will be a mainstay in Australia music for many years to come.
