John Butler Trio @ HordernPavillion, Sydney (3/09/10)

Tue 7th Sep, 2010 in Gig Reviews

John Butler seems so sincere and joyous. It pours out of him. When he said that this was the best gig of his tour, you almost believe him, even though I have heard that so many times in my life at so many gigs. Sonically the band were superb from the onset and with well over 20 songs in the set, you had a pretty good chance of hearing something you desired. Beefy and Bumperhead next to me kept on slamming the beers and calling for Betterman. I figured they had a pretty good chance of hearing it.

This current line-up of the trio were definitely getting funky tonight. With a set list that touched on most of their albums, it was a buffet of delights. Having been on the road from April until now, more or less, the ability to jam and bounce off of each other has been honed to perfection. With songs like Pickapart, Better Than, and Grooving Slowly, John simply tore the place apart and had people swaying and dancing throughout the nearly 150 minute set.

With Nicky Bomba on percussion and Byron Luiters now on bass, the playfulness and joy that makes up a John Butler gig are still very much intact. April Uprising, his fifth album, has definitely been shaken out on this tour and the live versions of these tracks are glowing. The long instrumental that is Ocean was one of the most incredible guitar solos that I have heard this century. Standing next to me, B and B were still yelling for Betterman, but I had other ideas. Funky Tonight had not been played and I had a true sense that John could not leave this Hordern crowd without that number.

Returning for the encore, Butler thanked everyone, played Peaches and Cream and one other track and the guys next to me were nearly whining for Betterman. The crowd wanted to groove and the band retained their funky stylish playing and the Betterman duo trudged off muttering. Hopefully, after a moment of reflection, they could cherish all the other extraordinary music they had witnessed this evening.

Check out the photos from the gig