Ryan Meeking And The Few, TheHello Morning @ The Toff InTown, Melbourne (18/7/09)

Wed 22nd Jul, 2009 in Gig Reviews

Having never been to the Toff or experienced what I was assured was an amazing artist, I headed into Saturday night’s Ryan Meeking And The Few gig slightly unsure.

First off, The Toff was much smaller than I had envisaged, but was warm, friendly and a totally comfortable place for a little gig like this one. Walking into it from a FREEZING Melbourne night in the middle of July was like a mug of hot chocolate, it really warms you from the inside out.

Unfortunately there was nothing outstanding about The Hello Morning’s set. They were good, don’t get me wrong, not unpleasant to listen to, but not attention-grabbing either. It’s a shame, because it was the perfect environment for them, but they just didn’t quite get there. Hopefully in time they will perfect their stage presence and become more effective at drawing people in, .

Ryan Meeking has a voice that sounds quite nice on EP but is incredible live, it instantly grabbed the attention of most of the people in the room. They are a band that can fit either a cold winter’s night or a hot summer afternoon perfectly, with their rocking but cosy atmosphere.

What I noticed from my vantage point about halfway back and against a wall, was the movement of the crowd. At the beginning of the set, they were milling around, loosely grouped around the middle of the room. Throughout the set, there was a slow but sure shift of the entire crowd towards the front, so that by the time Meeking announced the last song, there were people pressed against the front of the stage, seemingly unaware that they had moved forward. A singer that commands a stage presence like that is definitely one to keep an eye on.

Highlight was definitely Layers. Rocking, stomping, the band genuinely love playing and it showed. Though they don’t show it as obviously as some, (ie Skipping Girl Vinegar, who have Cheshire-Cat grins) but they were still quite clearly loving the moment. Most of the crowd followed through on that, picking up on the atmosphere and dancing for the first time that night. Stop Asking was also a brilliant track, especially when the band stopped and let Meeking show off his impressive vocals.

What did disappoint me was his awkward attempts at engaging the crowd. Anecdotes, which would have fitted perfectly into conversation at a backyard BBQ were stilted and resulted in a slight loss of interest from the crowd. He ended up shouting over the chatter, which made him sound nervous and a little overkeen, rather than the cool, indie-chic look that they seem to be aiming for.

Hot tip: Keep an eye out for Ryan Meeking And The Few – if they catch the ears of the right people, they will be huge.