Oscar + Martin, Wooshie,Brothers Hand Mirror @Worker's Club, Melbourne12/5/11

Fri 13th May, 2011 in Gig Reviews

Who is there that could say this album hasn’t warmed their own heart? It came maybe unexpectedly for many, but swept around every place, picking up an autumnal wind that was full of heartfelt praise and happy listenings. Oscar + Martin are in a good place right now – lots of people love them, many more will, and that must be a special place to find yourself.

Part of the warmth that came from this particular show was supplied by the venue- perhaps there isn’t a lovelier bandroom this size in Melbourne. Candles warmed the walls, happily failing to burn the place down.

First to the stage were Brother’s Hand Mirror, featuring half of the evening’s headliners, Oscar Slorach-Thorn, on tape-deck beats, accompanied by a happy rapper (possibly named Cougar Flashy, although*Grant Gronewold* will suffice). Aside from one agitated tape mishap, this was a stellar set to begin the night. Flashy brought a great sense of swagger and form, tied so well to a feeling of exuberant energy so rare to find in performance these days. He was more than adequately backed-up though; Oscar’s beats lurching and snapping in all the best, swagged-out places. For some melody, there was a scintillating cover of Oops (Oh My), by well-forgotten RnB star Tweet. To conclude, there was an “improvised composition”, formed from hand-claps, clicks and beatbox from Oscar and sunburst melodies from Flashy. It was, frankly, incredible! In a lyrical movement that went from love to the moon, fittingly, this set was some kind of sublime.

So far, so wow! And so on into a man named Wooshie, who took to the stage next. If BHM had warmed the dancefloor, Wooshie torched it. Whoever this man is, he knows how to make one killer beat after another. Swirling granular synths and heaving bass thumps wove about to forge something blitzingly danceable, so that a good few people lost their chops (including the omnipresent Oscar). Wooshie just swayed; I think he too knew that his shit was immense (in the good way.). His set held a good balance too, calming out towards the end, smoothing down. A few more chest-riddling bass sounds, and then he was done.

Expectation is a tough mother, and two brilliant support acts only heightened the hype for what was to close the show. One band, two men; on the brink of something.

With little fanfare Oscar + Martin both appeared, off and into album opener My Blood. Notable for a lack of Hazel Brown and a few bum notes, Oscar cheerfully insisting they were just warmin’ up. Recognise was next, which was plenty better, but as song followed song, that warmth seemed slow to come out.

Unfortunately, it seemed like there was something wanting here. The set at times felt something like practise, and at the same time, it felt like practise was what was missing. Without the confidence in their roles from complete unconscious knowledge of them, it seemed too difficult for them both to settle in, to completely “get into it”. About three or four times they conferred on “which song next?”, a new intro to Do the Right Thing was decisively botched, and Martin’s drumming played sloppy seconds at times.

The communal vibe that came from seeing Bec Rigby, “Grant” and a bass-playing fellow join them on stage at different points, brought the set together, and towards the end, Lion’s Heart and Oyster surged with energy brought forward at last. And there was always a lot of love in the room, and people were dancing, and enjoying everything. And this is what their music can give to people – optimism, cheerfulness, playfulness; it’s what reverberates through the album, and make these guys so special. No-one is doing that kind of earnest heartfulness anywhere near as well as them, and because of that, there’s so much hope and optimistic excitement for their future. Let’s hope they can carry on that warmth, keeping their musical ingenuity, and not face the fate of another Melbourne band who everyone loved so much.