Hope Sandoval & The WarmInventions @ Enmore Theatre,Sydney (25/6/2010)

Mon 28th Jun, 2010 in Gig Reviews

Patience is a virtue for Hope Sandoval fans, particularly in Australia. While fans worldwide had to wait eight years for her most recent record, Australian has never seen a tour from either herself or Mazzy Star, the group with which she became well-known. With this in mind, as well as her somewhat patchy live reputation, there were plenty of excitedly nervous punters milling about the Enmore foyers.

A shame really – they should’ve found their seats in time for Dirt Blue Gene. Another project from members of The Warm Inventions (Sandoval’s backing band), they impressed with a succinct, engaging set. Interestingly for an Irish group, they had a heavy Americana sound that mingled with a more psychedelic, Pink Floyd influence. Think a dreamier Wilco.

Thankfully, Mick Turner and Jeffrey Wegener managed to pull a better crowd as the main support. Coming from groups like Dirty Three and Laughing Clowns, they were joined by Ian Wadley (formerly of Bird Blobs and St Helens) on bass for a sparse, improvised set that fit well within the evening’s proceedings. It didn’t always click, particularly early on, but Turner’s guitar loops often found themselves locked in a groove with Wegener’s loose drumming, making for some tremendous passages.

After a short delay, Hope Sandoval & The Warm Inventions took to the stage, launching straight into a cover of Bert Jansch’s Courting Blues. The group’s sound was strikingly lush, and Sandoval’s vocals continue to impress, cutting through the mix with a familiarity that instantly rewarded her patient fans.

Those hoping that the show would reveal more about Sandoval would’ve been disappointed, though. Her elusiveness clearly extends to her on-stage persona, and the performance was conducted in near-darkness. She wanted us to focus on the music (even saying so herself, in the evening’s only audience interaction), but arguing against a visual element in a live music setting is a hard sell. Some impressive film projections went someway towards appeasement, but the insular nature of her performance certainly frustrated some.

The performance itself was very strong though. Sandoval possesses a voice that’s even more impressive in the live setting, and The Warm Inventions complemented her wonderfully with a rich, but restrained performance. And just as things threatened to become a little repetitive, they closed the main set with a visceral rendition of For The Rest Of Your Life.

Following with a two song encore, they drew their relatively short set to a close, leaving one feeling impressed, but slightly underwhelmed. It was a solid set, but those hoping to catch a more forthcoming Sandoval would’ve been left wanting.

Check out the photos from the gig