Caminiss’ gallery

The baking sun was slowly shying away from the vineyard and soft shadows took over the green, grassy area where several hundreds of picnic mats already lay positioned towards the white half-domed stage at Leeuwin Estate last Saturday night.

Amongst the thousands of relaxed fans drinking white, red, Corona and even VB at the Leeuwin Estate near Ausugsta were the hippies, families with tie-dye clothed kids, the bare-chested, long-haired, dreadlocked, pirate-vested, pot-smoking alternatives, surfers, American and German tourists and bogans wearing colourful bandanas and t-shirts with printed slogans like ”- œBeer is the reason I get up in the morning” and “Stop logging native forest now.”

As the sun set, fiery-haired Californian folk singer Brett Dennen busted out some hip flexing and shaking dance moves, clocking his neck to the tune of his acoustic guitar like an Indian snake charmer. Although more unfamiliar to an Australian audience, Dennen and his two-piece temporary band from Sydney had some dedicated American fans who shouted out for long-loved songs from the empty dance area that served as a playground for hippy kids with glowsticks until dusk, mosquitoes and Blue King Brown emerged. Mirroring American singer Ben Kweller at times and charged with a soft, rich sound, Dennen entertained the gathering crowd with his elephant tattooed acoustic guitar and his somewhat southern accent, addressing the salty sun-kissed blues and roots fan-base with, “Ya’ll having a good afternoon.”

His slow motion leg orientated chicken dance whilst strumming along to Desert Sunrise and Little Cosmic Girl was a highlight amongst the impulsively growing Brett Dennen fan club. The sultry, pop-induced She’s Mine and upbeat Make You Go Crazy resulted in some “very nice dancing” from the populating grassy dance floor according to Dennen himself. When a loud siren noise introduced Melbourne-based blues and roots band Blue King Brown, there was an an instant movement of happy, environmentally friendly fans towards the multi-instrumentalist band.

The loud drum beat, bongo and introduction of the electric guitar as lead singer Natalie Pa’apa’a took to the stage and invited audience participation from the beginning of the eight-piece band’s set created an intense and excitable atmosphere of anticipation amongst some tipsy, tranquil and barefoot hippie hustlers. Dressed in all black with blue and green glittered striped eyes applied in a similar style to traditional native American-Indian medicine paint, Pa’apa’a and the back-up vocalists comprising of Sri-Lankan, Maori and Haitian culture wowed the crowd with their raw, over-powering jazzy ballads and the Haka.

Announcing that all money from the band’s gig would be going towards aid for the Haitian earthquake, Pa’apa’a went on to preach about climate change, asking everyone to “vote with the planet in mind” after performing the band’s latest song Rush regarding negotiations in Copenhagen. Filled with bongos, wooden xylophones, cymbal clashings, electric rifts and the rhythmic, organ sounds of the 3-tiered keyboard, Blue King Brown filled the twilight sky with an energetic fusion of melodies and political messages concerning peace, love and freedom.

Headed by a dreadlock-free John Butler, the John Butler Trio took to the orange-lit stage and the catchy, mellow rhythms of High floated out above the majestic karri forest, inhibitions slowly began to deteriorate as fans flocked to the crowded acoustic dance disco. The long winded drum solo executed in Revolution and rich, euphonious sounds of the banjo in Betterman resulted in a quick build-up of excitement from not only the drunken teenage bohemians in the unusually free-spirited mosh pit, but the middle-aged picnic chair types smiled, bopped and poured themselves another glass of wine. Already the noise of the crowd singing along with Butler could be heard echoing into the trees and when he announced Johnny’s Gone, a tale he said was about “someone running the big house, intervention and forgotten things” would be the next tune in the eighteen track set, the audience was already clapping and cheering.

The intriguing and unpredictable sounds of the harmonica that could be confused with any Xavier Rudd song began the less familiar tune Daniella but the fast-paced vocals and conversational lyrics combined with a monstrous electric guitar solo didn’t change the mood of the happy, well-behaved crowd. Mama began but not before Butler commented on the beautiful evening, and sat down, placing his acoustic guitar flat on his lap and strumming it until the sounds of a sitar flutter through the speakers. The rich tones of the mimicked traditional Indian instrument rang out into the balmy night and kept the growing passion vibrating through the sweaty crowd.

The dramatically changing acoustic rendition of Ocean was performed like a metaphor for its title; unpredictably pleasing with outbursts of rage encompassed by a calm continuity. The lights were dimmed and all eyes were on Butler’s guitar, except for the man himself, who had his eyes closed, living in the moment. The softer drum beat underscoring Excuse was a contrast to the ska beat that shone through Company as Blue King Brown’s Pa’apa’a was welcomed back onto stage to rap about climate change once again, a performance that Matt Lambert from the Hilltop Hoods would have been proud of.

The quick electric guitar riffs in C’mon were dedicated to everyone who likes hillbilly music and punk rock. Butler challenged; “Now let’s see if they can dance together.” But the mixed crowd was already jumping along to the banjo and tribal bongo beat in Ragged. This free-spirited bopping and popping was taken to new heights as the pleasantly catchy and popular tune Zebra was introduced and the weird, wild and wonderfully offbeat fans danced in unison.

New tune Funky was recieved ecstatically, despite its unfamiliarity. Dedicated to all the scared people who want to do what they feel, the bass reverberated out onto the picnic-decorated slope where picnic rug prancing took place. The drunken, loving audience participated in he softhearted acoustic lullaby Peaches, repeating the lyrics, “All I know is I love you. Yes I love you”. But it was the now popular tune One Way chosen for the encore that had everyone jumping. The ten-minute percussion, drum and bongo performance from the trio that ensued captivated all who had the privilege of witnessing this spectacle.

Although at times predictable and invariable in flavour, the joyful appearance and happy attitude conveyed by the John Butler Trio throughout their performance was invigorating. To see a band perform live and really enjoy themselves openly on stage and share this with the audience automatically wins the crowd over and the John Butler Trio accomplished this without doubt.

Caminiss’ gallery