Dallas Frasca, Marji CurranTrio, Kim Churchill @ANU Bar,Canberra (11/09/2009)

Sun 13th Sep, 2009 in Gig Reviews

A bright red ruffled dress, a killer hair do’ and an earthy grunt, brought the roof down at ANU bar last Friday night. The folk rock sounds of Dallas Frasca was nothing short of entertaining, and for the half standing, half seated audience, there was plenty of love shared between them. With slide guitar chorus lines and stealthy lead guitar rifts, the show was beaming with exceptional talent.

This National Tour, Not for Love or Money, has spread the word about Dallas and her band. Canberra was lucky enough to experience these true folk rock sounds, along with supporting acts Marji Curran Trio and Kim Churchill.

The coastal sounds of Kim Churchill started the night off on a good note. With an audience of all ages and personalities, the mood was chilled out and flowed really well. Second on stage was Marji Curran Trio, and boy did they turn it up. Another big hair do’ and quality sounds created yet another entertaining performance. The lead singer gave us plenty of soulful and meaningful lyrics, mixed with a whole bunch of solid folk rock rifts. The drummer obviously had his foundation set for the band, as they seemed to work very well in their timing, sound and quality of performance.

Starting off with a cover of Dolly Parton’s Jolene, the band had locked themselves in for an impressive show. The instrumental intros got the crowd moving and those who’d been sitting on their rears rose to the occasion, getting themselves to the front of the pack. They threw in some tambourines and clanging symbols which gave the set a very – œbush dance” kind of feel. There was no stopping the audience from bouncing around the room from that moment onwards.

Although the crowd and band interaction was comfortable, there was something about Dallas Frasca’s presence that had everyone staring forwards. Her fantastic dress sense and overall appearance was stunningly impressive, and the music nothing less than captivating. The night had plenty of variety, but all performances reeked of true folk rock, something you could compare to John Butler and the like.

Once the ANU bars casual mood subsided, the bluesy folk rock vocals kept roaring through the room. There was so much depth in Dallas Frasca’s voice, and the guitarist proved enough talent to work alone with much success. The back-up singer threw down some excellent vocals, with a wicked solo, she smacked us all over the head with her remarkable talent, busting out in support of Dallas throughout most songs, her solo was undeniably striking. With hits such as I like you better when you’re straight, each song seemed to have a message within, and the personal vibe of each of those songs brought a sense of knowledge about who she is, was and would like to be.

The confident singer/songwriter delivered a not so lengthy, but definitely strong performance, and those who tagged along proved likewise. There is plenty more to see from these fame bound performers, so if you missed it, make sure to book it in for next time!