Blue King Brown @ The GovernorHindmarsh, Adelaide (27/05/11)

Sun 29th May, 2011 in Gig Reviews

From the humble beginnings of an acoustic duo, formed by Natalie Pa’apa’a and Carlo Santone, Blue King Brown has grown in leaps and bounds to form an 8 piece band that is known throughout the world as one of the most inspiring, energetic and powerful Urban Roots bands to hit the stage. And here they were, bringing their awesome act to the humbleness (yet superior venue) that is the Gov. I arrived well in advance to get a good spot, and already there was an energy in the crowd that was almost palpable. Not in the sense of loud, boisterous wolf whistling fans, but in the sense of dreadlocked, Rastafarian hat wearing, pot smoking fans. Still, the vibe was there with genuine anticipation for some decent reggae rocking beats.

First to hit the stage was Melbourne based trio, Diafrix, checking in with some intense bassy beats that you could actually feel in your bones. These guys were not shy to the stage, and soon had 80% of the crowd jumping around and enthusiastically echoing the standard ‘Hey, Ho’ calls that are sub-standard at these kinds of gigs. Nevertheless, almost everyone got into it, to my surprise, as it is very rare to see a support band get the crowd going as if they were the main act. The crescendo was definitely when the boys hit it off with their single Simple Man. I predict that these guys will be looking for their own support bands soon enough, as their confidence and stamina left the crowd wanting more.

After some anticipation, clapping and calling from the sold out crowd, Blue King Brown burst onto the stage erupting into an energy packed intro, capped off with Natalie Pa’apa’a acknowledging the indigenous heritage of the land. Vocal back up was provided by two beautiful Papua New Guinean women, who were given their own opportunity to show off their voices. One of the girls belted out her own version of Hey Ya by OutKast, and completely blew the crowd away, instantly adding hundreds of new fans to her list. Absolutely the highlight of the night. Still though, Pa’apa’a’s smooth and inspiring lyrics oozes cool, and she did not fail to impress. There were plenty of epic solos, particularly by guitarist Cesar Rodriguez, who’s fingers were all but a blur when the spotlight hit him. In true Blue King Brown fashion, Pa’apa’a shared the bands inspiration for changing the world for the better, and explained to the crowd that this was the focus for their new album Worldwize, which they are promoting on this tour. Bringing to an end a night of heaving energetic songs, and equally chilled out trance-like tunes, the band topped off their set list with their new single Never Fade Away. All in all, the crowd were left happy (and slightly red-eyed) as they reluctantly wafted from the building into the cold night air.