Andrew McMahon @ Fowler'sLive, Adelaide (15/02/11)

Wed 16th Feb, 2011 in Gig Reviews

Whilst a storm was brewing outside, it was warm and cosy inside Adelaide’s Fowler’s Live, showcasing the talented singer/songwriter Andrew McMahon. As the crowd shuffled into the venue at around 7pm, I was quite surprised as to how many people there were. Don’t get me wrong, Andrew McMahon can definitely pull in a good crowd but since it was an acoustic set, featuring tracks from McMahon’s Something Corporate and Jack’s Mannequin I thought it might attract less people. However, a fairly decent bunch of punters congregated inside. When 8pm rolled around, local supporting act Leena casually made her way onto the stage. Her deep and soulful rapport in her songs was captivating. Having not heard of her before I did not know what to expect. With an incredibly charming and endearing personality, she had the majority of crowd paying her undivided attention. With songs like See No Evil and Don’t Feel Like Home, she certainly made herself known. Sabotage pried her away from the keyboard and onto the guitar which was a nice change of pace. Leena was a delightful starter for the night.

As 9pm loomed, the crowd got antsy. With heads leaning in and necks craning to catch a glimpse of the man himself coming out onto the stage. As the clock ticked a little past 9 o’clock, he waltzed out into the open. With the crowd erupting in cheers, he took his place in front of the piano launching straight into the set. With such a variety of possible songs it was interesting to see which ones would be performed. Starting out with the powerful ballad Hammers and Strings (A Lullaby) from the second Jack’s Mannequin album The Glass Passenger McMahon was pulling at everyone’s heart strings (no pun intended). McMahon had charm oozing out of him. And talent, so much talent. Continuing on the Jack’s Mannequin route (and then joined on stage by Bobby Anderson to add some acoustic guitar and extra vocals) he played on with tunes like Spinning and crowd favourite Holiday From Real which received the loudest sing-a-long for the evening so far. I was initially slightly cautious as to how the songs would translate into an acoustic setting but to my surprise and enjoyment they sounded just as good and in some cases even better. McMahon is a passionate performer. Whilst he wasn’t jumping around the stage, he sure tried his best to express himself from behind that piano. The utter desperation in his voice is clearly visible in his live performance. It is truly magical to watch.

A few Something Corporate tracks were thrown into the mix and it was clear that there were quite a lot of fans eager for songs from his first band with The Astronaut and Down being very well received. McMahon asked the audience if it would be all right to play a new song. Of course the crowd obliged willingly. By the sounds of Restless Dream it is clear that the upcoming new album in the works will be a treat. The strength of the set lay in the last three songs. Personal favourite Dark Blue from Jack’s Mannequin’s first album Everything In Transit had the crowd singing along with gusto. La La Lie followed suit with McMahon encouraging the audience to sing the chorus back to him. Ending the set with probably the most well known Jack’s Mannequin song was well worth the wait. The Mixed Tape was by far the best performance of the night. McMahon delivered it with such power that got the crowd moving, despite the acoustic nature of it, which was lovely to experience. McMahon’s piano work is simply fantastic and was showcased definitively in this song. McMahon and Bobby exited the stage as the inevitable wait for the encore began. However, it didn’t take long for him to come back and play a few more songs. Punk Rock Princess was a nice combination of grunge and pop/rock that had be bopping to and fro. Then Bobby Anderson got the limelight for a moment, showcasing one of his songs. As the night was coming to a close and as the last stop on the Australian Tour, McMahon thanked the crowd and closed with The Resolution.

An evening with Andrew McMahon was what we were offered and that’s exactly what we got. And what an evening it was. Magical. Whilst the crowd wasn’t huge, it made the evening a lot more intimate and exclusive. Hopefully McMahon will come back with band in tow sometime in the near future. He certainly has a passionate following, that’s for sure.