Three years ago Perth’s Neko Case fans braved 40 degree heat to see her show in Fremantle. The American singer and her band must not think kindly of Perth after being treated to the same temperatures again tonight at the Rosemount.

Jen Cloher was supporting Case for the Australian tour. Cloher is a generic female singer/songwriter- you know the ones, they’re really talented, play acoustic guitar, and sound like Jewel. Cloher writes poignant songs that she sings with conviction and her voice is well projected, yet she offers us no reason to pay attention to her. She sounds just like hundreds of other female singer/songwriters. And she’s opening for Neko Case – a female singer/songwriter… Which raises the question, what makes Neko Case different?

As she walks onto the stage with her band in tow, backing vocalist Kelly Hogan told us that they’ve been touring this album for exactly one year. Combined with playing on one of the hottest days Perth has had in six years, they all look older, and bone wearyingly tired. Two other things worth noting before the band kicked things off. Neko Case’s affection for Iron Maiden as expressed through her Iron Maiden Vans, and guitarist Paul Rigby is missing his velvet suit jacket ‘It has to be this hot for him to play without it’ they quipped later in the show.

Despite looking as though they won’t make it through the show, the band began with all the strength they could muster with Blacklisted track Things That Scare Me. The moment Case opens her mouth you forget the heat and remember why all these people are willing to suffer to see this lady. Case is dressed like the kind of 15 year old character Ellen Page would play – she’s petite and pretty in a way that can’t be over looked no matter how plainly she dresses in her jeans and tee-shirt. As she sings the first line that adolescent image is transformed by a voice that is refreshing, yet world weary. The full voice sounds like it could fill the room without a microphone, and it’s a miracle to hear it from such a small lady. Before we heard the first song for the night from Case’s current record, Middle Cyclone, we heard a heartfelt Maybe Sparrow off her previous album Fox Confessor Brings the Flood.

Along with the onstage banter between Case and Hogan, part of the strength of Case’s live show how relaxed she is, even when things go wrong. Very early in the set things looked dire for the ticket holders when the stage lost sounds and lights, and the venue’s air conditioning went out. Yet Case responded with a meek shrug and pleads the audience not to riot, with a laugh. And the humility Case shows when faced with her own mistakes is very amiable. Prison Girls had two false starts as Case’s voice cut out in the first few words – a confused Case laughed it off and without even a mouthful of water got it perfect on the third shot.

People Got a Lotta Nerve was the first track we heard from the current album. It starts by taking a step back from the band’s usually country heavy sounds for a moment with a shimmering New Pornographers style intro, which works as a refreshing change without stepping too far from the country sounds Case has harnessed in her other records. Pushing on through the asphyxiating heat, title track Middle Cyclone appeared a third of the way through the set. Hogan picked up an enchanting music box from the side of the stage, like the ones you had in jewellery boxes as a little girl, Hogan feeds the sheet of music through the amped up music box in accompaniment to the song, adding some music hall charm.

Despite the critical acclaim Middle Cyclone has received, the stand outs in tonight’s show came from her older material. From the 2002 Blacklisted was a heartfelt rendition of Deep Red Bells. Fox Confessor Brings the Flood also brought two of the strongest songs of the evening with Margaret vs Pauline and That Teenage Feeling. The two girls in Margaret vs Pauline were brought to life by Case’s voice in a testament to her story telling ability. And as That Teenage Feeling brought us towards the end of the set, the band seemed to shake off the heat to play at full strength for the final moments.

Punctuating Hogan’s introduction of – œa breezy song’ the doors behind the stage were opened in anticipation of the bands exit after the final tune, This Tornado Loves You. No one would have blamed the band for not returning into the heat for an encore, but it didn’t take too long to entice them back regardless for just two more songs: Vengence and Train from KC.