Abbe May and The Rockin'Pneumonia @ Mojo's Bar,Perth (23/3/08)

Wed 26th Mar, 2008 in Music Reviews

It may only be a few people in Perth who know about joyous underground blues outfit Abbe May and her band the Rockin’ Pneumonia. Regardless, the exclusive fan base was enough to see Mojo’s Bar in North Fremantle full to bursting when the artist once described as a mixture of Johnny Cash, Patsy Cline and Patti Smith, launched the new EP Costanza. The vine-covered beer garden, full of chatter and smoke, was deserted as everyone crammed in near the small interior as the 2008 WAMI darling took the stage.

Opening with Jesus Doin’ The Eagle Rock (not to be confused with Ross Wilson’s daggy – œ70s pub rock classic Eagle Rock) Abbe May and the Rockin’ Pneumonia showed the crowd what they were made of with Take A Trip Up The Country and the new single Costanza. Abbe May switches between electric and acoustic guitar, with a small frame belieing her strong voice that demands full attention from everyone listening.

After supporting The Drones, Tim Rogers, the Waifs, and Billy Bragg, Abbe May will release a full length LP, Howl and Moan, on 26 April. It’s a perfect name given Abbe May swings between PJ Harvey -esque wailing and husky, brooding vocals. It is easy to hear why the self-titled and privately funded LP sold thousands of copies purely by word of mouth.

True to blues tradition, the themes running through Abbe May’s music revolve around the bitter death of romance, and the lyrics cut deep into the soul. Costanza is gut-wrenching with, “Who’s going to love me when I let you go? Some loose lewd tongued Lothario? I can’t stand ya no more”. Howl and Moan will also surely appeal to anyone who has been trampled on by love. Abbe May sings the blues because she has the blues – Howl and Moan is dedicated to her late grandmother.

While you wouldn’t expect blues to get a crowd moving, the front row was not going to stand still for the final song. The cheering after the set was over sounded more like something a later act at the Big Day Out would receive, rather than an underground blues act from Perth.