The Waifs @ The Metro Theatre,Sydney (11/02/09)

Mon 16th Feb, 2009 in Gig Reviews

It certainly felt like a long time between drinks and the sold-out Metro Theatre crowd was definitely a testament to that. But WA based folk rockers The Waifs were finally back on our side of this wide brown land, was it worth the wait…you bet your Birkenstocks it was!

Kicking off the night’s entertainment was solo folk blues artist Jez Mead. Unfortunately complications at the door saw me catching only the last couple of songs of his set – however what I did hear I really enjoyed. Lit only by a single spotlight, Jez cuts a lone figure on the stage, which really compliments his sound. It’s about as stripped back as you can get. One man, a guitar and his harmonica.

To paint you a picture, Jez has a Seasick Steve-style beard and sounds almost Scott Weiland-esque when he gets into the gravellier notes of his impressive range. He finishes with a song that really shows off his talent on the guitar, playing a long and rolling melody to bring the set to a close. Later in the show, Donna Simpson of The Waifs would describe him as one of her favourite people in the world – not a bad wrap to catch from the headline act.

Knowing the gig had sold out weeks in advance, I was expecting the venue to be fuller than it was when I first arrived. However, the crowd is reasonably sparse to say the least. Five minutes to curtains though, and the Metro is as full as I have ever seen it before. The Waifs take the stage to thunderous applause and cheering from the venue. The stage is beautifully lit with various soft tones of orange and purple. Five wreaths made from small lights also adorn the stage. It sets the mood perfectly for the set which is about to follow.

“Not to worry, the set will be full of oldies,” Donna announces, not surprisingly garnering a big response from the excited crowd. The Waifs remain true to her word, dropping crowd favourites Highway One, Fourth Floor and an absolutely stunning version of London Still early on in the set.

The crowd is well engaged by now and help out with the end of London Still in surprisingly tuneful fashion (well done if you were a part of that). Willow Tree also gets the crowd involved, proving to be one of the tracks of the night. It’s easy to tell you are watching an experienced and very professional band: they are extremely tight and hardly a single note is dropped all night.

At times it would be just Donna doing her solo thing with a guitar, while at other moments she would leave the stage to sister Vicki Simpson and guitarist/vocalist Josh Cunningham. As far as song of the set, it’s hard to go past everyone’s sentimental favourite Lighthouse. However, I don’t think I am going to forget hearing that version of London Still for a while either.

I really hope we don’t need to wait as long until the Waifs are back gracing a stage here.