The Little Stevies, Ben Wellsand the Middle Names @ TheEast Brunswick Club, Melbourne(09/07/2010)

Tue 13th Jul, 2010 in Gig Reviews

Ben Wells and The Middle Names warmed up the crowd for The Little Stevies with their laid-back acoustic charm. They looked like the kind of boys that you could bring home to meet your sweet old granny, and they’d probably bring cookies with them. The Tasmanian four-piece’s music was just as pleasing, with frontman Ben Wells’ delightfully relaxed but soulful voice backed by soothing pop-folk melodies. The young lads won over the crowd with songs like Hawk, Opportunity, Road To Happiness, Shine, Rainy Days and I Just Wanna Be Your Friend.

Even before headlining band The Little Stevies made it onto the stage, the crowd was buzzing over the announcement of their impressive $16,000 Victoria Rocks grant earlier that day. The Melbourne band had spent the earlier part of the day at Cherry Bar, where they performed a single song to the music industry crowd. “One song!” singer Sibylla Stephen crowed about their make-it-or-break-it set. “I should also add that we had to perform after Dan Kelly, who had a roomful of politicians and music industry people singing along… and we were like FUCK!”

Whether or not they managed to outdo Dan Kelly or not, The Little Stevies certainly made The East Brunswick Club crowd fall in love with them. Drummer Josh Barber’s eclectic beats and unusual percussion skills lent them an edge that most folk bands lack, with his drum brushes and mallets certainly getting a work out. Bassist Robin Geradts-Gill provided the witty banter, bass beats, backing vocals and occasional guitar work. The two band members that certainly got the most attention from the crowd, however, were sisters Sibylla and Beth Stephen, with their similarly disarming and mellow voices. But despite their comparable vocals, the siblings were complete opposites onstage, with Sibylla’s adorable rambling banter between songs while Beth simply looked on at her with a raised eyebrow and a bemused half-smile all the while. Perhaps one reason why these four fresh-faced musicians have so many fans is their totally unpretentious, honest between-song chit chat about getting dressed for gigs, booking hotel rooms and falling in love.

While the four Melburnians have that undeniable pop aspect to their music, they lack that horrible urgency that mainstream pop songs seem to have (where it almost seems like the world will blow up if the song doesn’t reach its chorus by 45 seconds in or whatever it is). The Little Stevies’ songs are like a summer’s day in a small country town – unhurried and beautiful, but never feeling like any note had overstayed its welcome. The quartet pleased the crowd with quietly lovely songs like Grandma, Peggy Suicide, Sunshower, Little Stevie and Almighty Friend, as well as the obligatory Melbourne-band song about trams.

If there was anyone at the venue who had any doubts over how such a young band could have been given a grant from The Australia Council and Victoria Rocks within the space of a few days, they were most definitely converted into Little Stevies lovers by the end of the night.

CHECK OUT PHOTOS FROM THE NIGHT HERE