It was so disorienting coming out of the Kid Confucius gig last Friday night. I felt like I’d been outdoors in summer, part of beach-side crowd grooving along to a soulful hip hop sound, with maybe a little volleyball going on in the background…the scent of sunscreen and beer…

Instead, the hyped-up audience tumbled out into Oxford Street, chilled and drenched by the rain, blinking at the transvestites begging for coins. Eight piece all-male band Kid Confucius had offered a rousing and well-received debut of their new tracks to a packed crowd, their unique brand of hip hop soul encouraging the entire room to dance.

Lead singer Rob Hezkial owned the stage, particularly encouraging the ladies to groove along by announcing at the third song, “This track is called Darling I Need You Baby,” with a flutter of his long-lashed soulful brown eyes and shake of his taut bulky shoulders (ahem…). The uplifting summery beats and funky horn section, reminiscent of Kiwi bands like Fat Freddys Drop, drew the audience to participate in songs. “Now I want you guys to help us out here. You gotta sing, ‘You come and go, while your yes is a no…’ Come on!” Hezkial encouraged, while guitarist Andrew Guirguis enticed the crowd by starting an infectious clapping riot.

Long-time Sydney live circuit favourites, Kid Confucius have tuned their trademark ska-tinted big band soul sound. Hezkial summed up the band’s progress by stating, “It kinda feels like we’re somewhere we haven’t been before,” then proceeded to kick off the hilarious feel-good Mowtown-ish track You Can’t Make It Up, starting with the line, “Today I kissed a parking officer on the lips”.

Crowd favourites like The Fire Below tore up the fans, along with new tunes such as their latest single Good Luck. At times near-Calypso, Kid Confucius shared their infectious passion with the audience by begging us to “pop” our shoulders, bursting into a bout of whistling, and the bassist even pulled out a tambourine at one point. I met the trombone player’s mum at the pastry shop down the road after the gig, and she couldn’t have been prouder of the show.

If Kid Confucius is going to be playing live on sunnier days soon, it’s going to be a good summer. Nice work, Kids. Say hi to your mum for me.