Jeff Lang @ Her Majesty'sTheatre, Adelaide (17/05/08)

Mon 19th May, 2008 in Gig Reviews

Jeff Lang has been releasing albums for the past fourteen years but chances are your completely oblivious as to who he is as he has managed to stay under the music radar.

Although his songs, which all contain the same lyrical themes of long distance love, winding roads and his upbringing, don’t leave much to be desired, Lang’s gifted ability to play the guitar cannot be denied.

Lang was in Adelaide to promote his latest musical offering Half Seas Over at Her Majesty’s Theatre. This venue was ideal as it provided a sense of intimacy which is required to fully appreciate Lang’s playing.

Lang and his young bass player Grant Cumerford took to the stage right on time and immediately began performing. The opening song was My Mother Always Talked to Me taken from the new album. As Lang sits on a chair picking at the slide guitar rested on his lap it is easy to become instantly enthralled in how he manages to make something so complex look so effortless. His voice is not as in tune as his guitar however with Lang hitting some rather awkward notes.

His voice had warmed up though by the time he performed Five Letters with Lang showing that his voice could almost be as powerful as his guitar. Well almost. This song was one of the highlights of the night as Lang made his acoustic guitar sound like a powerful electric rock guitar. Each chord struck pulsated through the floor and up the audience’s spines.

Another stand out was The House Carpenter where the talented guitarist would go from singing acappella, with his voice filling the entire theatre, to playing loud and aggressive guitar riffs.

Crowd involvement was encouraged with Lang getting the audience to clap their hands and sing a long. He even took the time to give a little bit of background information to some of his songs for anybody unfamiliar with his music.

The duration of the hour and a half long concert showcased Lang’s ability to not just play the average acoustic guitar, but also the slide guitar and a tin guitar that was made right here in Adelaide.

Lang is predominately a guitarist as his songs contain some lyrics with a lot of guitar solos where he and his bassist would just jam for eight or more minutes straight. Many songs are not memorable because of Lang’s singing but more so because of how he closes his eyes and plays the guitar as if he is possessed by the music. He focuses so much on listening to his guitar and feeling each chord that he himself is rather surprised when each song ends.

Jeff Lang’s music may not appeal to all audiences but he is definitely worth seeing live if you are a fan of the guitar. You will be absolutely blown away by the sheer talent he exudes on his humble instruments.