A 4fer – Allison Russell , Jason Isbell, St Paul and the Broken Bones and Nathaniel Rateliff and the Nightsweats

Venue:

Melbourne- the Palais and the Forum

Date: 06/04/2023

Every Easter the East Coast Blues festival is held outside Byron Bay. This means heaps of roots artists tour the country at the same time. Sideshows are on offer for most of the acts.This year I saw Jason Isbell supported by Allison Russell on Thursday and the other 2 acts on Monday.

I wouldn’t have seen Isbell but for the support. Allison Russell has been reviewed on here previously. Very tough childhood before a vocal career including Birds Of Tokyo. Her only solo album “Outside Child” released in 2021 is excellent. For this show she had an all-female band of guitar, keyboards, percussion and Allison on vocals and errr….clarinet and banjo. Wonderful sonorous voice – reminded me of an animated Joan Armatrading. She could be a star but with this band I don’t think so. Apart from thnking they just weren’t very good there is the composition. Why not a bass? Why not a drum kit, given all the percussive efforts seemed to mimic drums anyway? A full band maybe, a brass section -it would be really something. But then again it would be pretty conventional and I don’t think this is the way she rolls. We will see. Mrs Wells thought they were “fine”.

I have seen Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit 3 times. First time in a small country hall when he was just about to break with South Eastern. To my mind he was in a bad mood and the band were too fucking loud. Second time was in a Recital Hall and again inappropriately loud. This time a big venue and we were seated at the front of the balcony. I think we copped the full brunt of the PA as a mate near the stage said the sound was excellent. I guess they just got the stage mix. The volume gave everything a hardness, a short of sheen that detracted from the melody of his song. But, a caveat. Today I get hearing aids so maybe things will be different henceforth. The 400 Unit are one tight unit and Jase was pretty perky, enjoying the venue and chatting. Quite a bit from The Nashville Sound and Dreamsicle from Reunions was a highlight including a classic southern twin guitar jam except Issy was on acoustic. Sadler Vaden is one shit hot guitarist too. Speaking of guitars, blimey there were a lot of guitar switches including the bass guitar being switched – that’s a first for me. Keyboards were confined to what my friend called”chord washes”. Some more prominence to the keyboards woud have been a nice break from the guitar assault. After releasing the covers album Georgia, a new album of originals, Weathervanes, is due out in June. 2 tracks are up on streaming services and he played them. Middle of the Morning was pretty good, the other one, Death Wish- not so much.The encore was The Stones Can’t You Hear Me Knockin’- pretty good albeit sans sax.

So it’s Easter Monday and an evening of short, portly vocalists. St Paul and The Broken Bones are on first at the Forum- called this because there are statues of Roman senators up on either side of the stage. It’s a good, mainly standing venue with some tiering so short arses like me have a fighting chance. More heavy on the jazzy funk jams than the soul side of things, Paul Janeway really puts in – on the stage, in the audience, on his knees, lying on the stage all the while wailing away. He gets a bit shrieky at times and I would have loved there to be another vocalist or backing vocalist with a lower register to provide a bit of counterpoint.

Bigger better sound for the Nightsweats, the first part of the show was mainly new stuff. Nathaniel didn’t announce any songs and didn’t have much to say apart from the” great to be back, really appreciate it” type stuff. A highlight was a couple from Rateliff’s solo album It’s Alright. Released just before COVID his producer and a close friend died and a long term relationship ended so it is bleak. But I like miserable. (See my review on the blog). I thought the early songs were a bit “hard” and lacked the swing of their classic songs. As they hit the favourites the crowd went off, full vocalled singalongs. The crowd were singing the chorus for the “unplayed” S.O. B. before they returned. The band were delighted with the reception. They have at least one more show in town but I doubt it will top that.

The audience:

First show skewed older, second show was pretty mixed.

It made me think..

On top of all these many sideshows, a new Melbourne mini Bluesfest has been trialled in an exhibition centre. Soulless venues being the downside, no shin-deep mud and good sight lines/sound the upside. It’s a big ask to have so many shows in town esp over Easter when many go away.

0