When you’re a female artist supporting someone with a vocal range that’s as dynamic as Kate Miller-Heidke, you’re always in danger of being shaded. And it’s no shame to Susannah Legge of the Hampdens, but that’s what happens tonight. Her soft and slightly sombre tones are pleasant on the ear and draw you in, and her dapperly dressed fellow band members create some tingling keys-fuelled melodies, but for the most part they’re working as background filler for the crowd.
Lately, Kate Miller-Heidke has been hard at work recording her debut album, and with a couple exceptions that’s what she treats us to once she and her band hit the stage. Opener Out and In is a exquisite and minimalistic dip into the back catalogue. Rapturously received by the crowd, it’s a showcase for Miller-Heidke’s vocals, supplemented by quiet piano, a touch of acoustic guitar and Sallie Campbell’s gorgeous violin.
It’s a deceptive choice, though, because immediately after she begins guiding us through her forthcoming album. And the best thing about this is that, as good as her old material is, the new stuff sounds even better. Songs such as Little Adam, Make it Last and Mama reveal in full what early hits Australian Idol and Blah Blah only hinted at – razor-sharp lyrical wit that Miller-Heidke hitches to stunning musical arrangements that flow from dramatic and baroque to romantic and lilting in a just a couple of heartbeats.
And in the midst of it all her marvellous operatically trained voice soars, dips, growls and trills with incredible precision and versatility.
It’s enthralling. Which explains why, within the space of a few songs, Miller-Heidke has the crowd comprehensively wrapped around her little finger.
In fact, when the ever-popular Space they Cannot Touch arrives mid-set, it feels like there’s a dip in intensity, despite the song’s aching poignancy. Still, it garners huge applause.
A couple of similarly gentle new tunes follow, before Miller-Heidke launches into a classy cover of Britney Spears’ Toxic (which she dedicates to the deranged diva herself) and then concludes the evening with a version of quirky new single Words that features an extended violin opening by Campbell. The crowd hollers for more though, and eventually get their way.
Miller-Heidke dutifully returns to perform luscious renditions of Apartment and Australian Idol, but this was definitely a performance where the main course was far tastier than the dessert.
