The blood rushed to my head on Thursday night as I prepared myself for a gig I was certain would put me in my element. Stuck in the Easter long-weekend traffic, I was panicking at the thought of being even just a minute late. Safely inside the uni gates just before 8pm, it was then a matter of guessing which road of the maze to pick in order to find the bar. Now, for virgin-newcastle-uni-gig-goers this was no easy feat! 8.15pm and beverage in hand, I found a nice posi at the front and surrendered my ears for a few hours.
Dan seemed kinda nervous at first, as the crowd hadn’t really packed in and there was the usual few people making smart-ass comments. However once he got talking to the crowd a bit more and his staggering vocal range kicked into gear, they came out of the woodwork! His country-ballad style tunes showed so much passion and, switching to a more blues vibe later in the set, he really funked things up a notch!
Talking to the crowd mid-set he claimed he was probably “murdering their songs [his and Scott Wilson’s (the other half of the duet)]”, but I don’t think anyone on campus was going to accuse him of that! I caught up with Dan after his set as he relaxed over a few beers. He said he loved the response he got from the crowd, especially over the last track he sang which was a Capella-style. It was the absolute highlight of his set and he hadn’t even planned on singing it! The crowd were stunned into silence by the performance and gave Dan a reaction he won’t forget in a hurry. His track She Ain’t was also a stand out for the night.
After the standard half hour of lets-make-the-crowd-wait, Xavier Rudd took to the stage. Playing a combination of tracks from To Let and the new album Solace the crowd were into it right from the first chord. There were quite a few sound problems throughout, however the crowd were patient as they tried to fix them.
The vibe was so intense that about half way through the set ie. after an hour and a half, I moved outside to get some air and some space, only to find that they were still packed wall to garden-post trying to get a glimpse of the magic occurring inside! Finding a spot I could both see from and breathe at, I found myself standing next to the one and only Dan Sultan who was just as captivated as the rest of us. Listening to the covers Xavier does so well, The Wind Cries Mary and No Woman No Cry, was what the bar needed to truly immerse themselves in the talent on show. Dan moved off to chat to some people when Xavier spotted him and acknowledged his presence. The crowd caught on and proceeded to scream the house down in appreciation.
Moving into the sensational tracks of Shelter and Let Me Be towards the end of the set was a great way of finalising the message – peace. Before the final encore, in true Xavier style, he said thankyou to the crowd with the incredible State of Mind.
Another gig that makes me look forward to the next one!
