Dave Graney and the LuridYellow Mist @ The Wheatsheaf,Adelaide (22/08/09)

Mon 24th Aug, 2009 in Gig Reviews

Dave Graney has been around so long now, that he just seems part of the Australian musical landscape, like The Go-Betweens or Tex Perkins. Like Tex, Dave has come in many guises, mainly in the name of his backing band, which currently is known as The Lurid Yellow Mist. Though he may traverse this wide brown land in many forms, one thing you can always count on with Mr Graney is that he will be dressed elegantly, with a touch of biker leather and Mars Bar panache to make the metrosexuals consider their choices and the typical Aussie blokes doff their hats, so to speak, to the fact that he wears it so well.

Dave and Co is a sure bet, in that the dapper Mt Gambierian will always be slick and professional in an uncle the family accepts, but isn’t quite sure of kind of way. You wouldn’t necessarily take him home to meet Granny, but he’d have a million yarns at the pub for you, should you happen to be ensconced within earshot and each one would be entertaining. The entertainment in his music is just as forthcoming and the Wheatsheaf’s beautifully intimate beer garden was a perfect venue for his warblings. Whether older tracks or newer tracks, he carried them off with his trio with a warming crispness and a fantastic sound quality for such a basic venue. The wonderful feel of the Wheatsheaf emanated through to all, making the overall experience warm and cosy with multiple beverages to salve the throats while their music massaged our ears.

The songs were superb, with the quirky lyrics titillating and causing rumination and the bass, drum and guitar infusion uplifting and causing excitation. Whether it was the magnificent Body Snatcher Blues with one of the best blues rifts and bass lines one could hope to hear, I’m in the Future Now, off We Wuz’ Curious, or that song which really epitomises the whole Dave Graney schtick for me – Rock ‘n’ Roll Is Where I Hide, the small but passionate sold out crowd were spoiled with one of the true legends of Aussie bluesy rock giving it his all and putting on a great night with the Mist. Don’t miss him for spades if he comes by your neck of the wood….