White Album Tribute - Perth(11/08/09)

Sat 15th Aug, 2009 in Gig Reviews

For those of us who love The Beatles, who were not born in time to see them, there is a gaping void in our souls; one that can never really be filled by recordings and film and Beatlemania shows… But a tribute by some of our finest home-baked artists may keep us placated for a while.

The best thing about sitting in the nosebleed section of Burswood Theatre is the spectacular lighting, and while you have to squint a little to see who’s on stage, you can see something other than the head of the person in front of you.

Seeing a rock show in a theatre has its merits; the most obvious is that the sound surpasses anything you experience in a pub. But while the sound and lighting was beautiful, it lacked that crazy press of people clamouring to be a part of the show… except for the women (who may, or not, have abused substances at the interval) who got onto the stage to twirl and frolic behind an apparently unaware Tim Rogers; only to be gently guided off-stage by a couple of unconcerned security workers.

It was nice to be in a venue that trusted you to take in your water bottle, and didn’t have imposing beefy guys lurking about the place.

The crowd was a mix of young and old, proving that The Beatles’ music truly spans generations – whether it was ahead of its time, or just classic and ageless is debatable, but by about the third song in, there was not a frown in the place; with some of the younger, more critical audience members, (probably dragged along by parents), no doubt rushing home to download the back-catalogue… or maybe their Past Masters albums, anyway…

The White Album was played in full, starting with Chris Cheney’s take on Back in the USSR -complete with the aeroplane noise intro. It was a great choice for him, considering the Living End has that old-school rock’n’roll edge; he seemed quite comfortable with the song.

The absolute stand-out song of the first part of the evening was While My Guitar Gently Weeps though it’s hard to choose the best song. It was performed by Cheney who, according to Rogers is “like an angel”. While he started with great material, courtesy of George Harrison, the solo he ripped apart at the end dropped the audience’s collective jaw. It’s easy to dismiss him as a guy from a band whose songs are catchy but all sound the same – until you hear him perform without his band and realise that he’s a very talented vocalist and musician.
(Apologies to Living End’s legions of fans)

Reportedly, Rogers requested “all the weird songs” for this tour; his first for the evening was _Happiness is a Warm Gun. Though this isn’t the weirdest of the bunch, it is definitely an eclectic mash of styles. He delivered it in gloriously dramatic fashion, falling about the stage and climbing up the microphone stand in desperation, the perfect rendition of someone in need of a fix. It must also be mentioned that Rogers was decked out in a most delightful green velvet suit (it may not have been velvet, but for the sake of romance, let’s say it was). In keeping with his request for the more obscure tracks, Rogers also gave us Piggies and Everybody’s Got Something to Hide Except me and my Monkey -both absolutely awesome. Everything Rogers touched that night turned to gold.

The full sound was cut back with great dramatic effect for most of Josh Pyke’s songs, notably, Blackbird, which is beautiful for its simplicity. It even seemed like we would hear it without the tacky bird-tweeting, but alas, it was there towards the end, thankfully not quite as cringe-worthy as on the album; and it probably wouldn’t have been a true tribute without it.

Pyke was also responsible for Martha, a song usually overshadowed on an album of classics; but he gave it new life. It really seemed like the kind of song he could have written himself, though the lyrics are a little simpler than his usual fare, it wouldn’t be out of place on one of his albums.

Phil Jameson, another surprisingly talented vocalist gave us So Tired apt, considering his well-publicised past struggle with Methamphetamine. He sang it with such feeling and conviction, one wonders if he chose this song for himself, or if it was chosen by someone else, and was it difficult a subject for him?

In the second half, Cheney took on Helter Skelter, and once again, he did not disappoint; with the most amazing breakdown on stage at the end, shaking his guitar, laying it flat on stage and grinding up and down the fretboard until he looked completely spent.

Kudos to the backup singers, who delivered some impossibly high notes in angelic tones; and who seemed unsure of what to do with their hands and bodies… maybe they needed some maracas or, a mic. stand to drag around the stage like Cheney.

The full compliment of musicians included strings, keys, brass and woodwinds, and two drummers, which was a bit weird, since Ringo Starr’s drums are not exactly complex; but the show was a tribute to the album itself, and two kits were needed to create the rich, layered sound that The Beatles perfected.

The only disappointment of the night was the absence of discordant acid trip, Revolution Number 9 (It was played through the speakers as the crowd filed in after interval.) It would have been amazing to see them pull it off live, and Rogers did hint at a little bit of “number nine…… number nine… number nine…..” as he walked back on stage to begin final album track, Goodnight, sung by all four performers.

At this point, it was hard not to think about all the other songs they could cover, like, how cool would it be if they sang Come Together? Low and behold, after a group recap of Revolution #1, the unmistakable thrumming bass-line echoed through the theatre, inciting much applause and well deserved standing ovation from the audience.

It was such a cool experience, and we can only hope it’s not the last of its kind, there could be a series of tours of each album, by different artists, and there would be a guaranteed excited crowd at every one… so, who do we need to talk to, to get the ball rolling on that one?