The Bohemian Masquerade Ball @Albert Hall, Canberra,(10/9/10)

Mon 13th Sep, 2010 in Gig Reviews

SEE THE GALLERY HERE!

Albert Hall is the perfect setting for anything glamorous, extravagant and colourful, so naturally it was the perfect setting for the Canberra leg – and national opening night – of The Bohemian Masquerade Ball.

This was the first stop out of Melbourne for what can only be described as a plethora of bewitching delights and debaucherous gypsy-folk. Canberra is slowly but steadily putting itself on the creative map and, glancing around the room, it became apparent why. If you managed to sift through the guys in bad suits and the piratical, bosom-busting women, you would find beautiful vintage finery, intricate face-paint and amazingly artistic masks.

With everyone looking so fabulous, it was only fitting the entertainment provided matched. Resident Canberra gypsy-about-town, Adam Hadley, acted as Master of Ceremonies for the evening, dressed in fishnets and what appeared to be a wedding veil and was given the task of readying the crowd for each band.

The cabaret, bar-room jazz of Mojo Juju got the crowd swaying to and fro, and the intoxicating, glamorous sounds of Lolo Lovina set a sultry, moody atmosphere.

Local vagrants, Mr Fibby delivered their delightful, yet eerie brand of storytelling, attracting quite the crowd of loyal followers. Brothers Grim took to the stage with Americana drenched, bluesy gusto and played a set that was a perfect mixture of carnal energy, folk and hillbilly rock.

Boys (and girls) will be boys, and there was no shortage of whistling and catcalling when Frankie Valentine and La Viola Vixen took to the stage. With sensual and theatrical burlesque performances, each had the perfect amount of the required cheeky humour.

Melbourne-based band The Orphanage brought their many instruments and gave a gritty, raw performance with plenty of feeling straining from their guttural vocals. The Barons of Tang closed the evening, and if you weren’t dancing before you certainly were by then, as their lively brand of gypsy-folk-tango was pretty hard to ignore.
The Barons left the crowd delighted and dazzled, heady with the wonder of the night and in some cases, sans mask and shoes.

The Bohemian Masquerade was a home for the left-of-centre, with an eclectic band of ragtag misfits and a motley assortment of scamps, tramps and swanning cinderellas.

If you can get to another stop on the tour, then make sure to put on your fanciest gladrags and leave a shoe behind.

SEE THE GALLERY HERE!