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 Photo: David Burness
Ventriloquism isn’t easy. Not only must you throw your voice – you need to do so entertainingly. As the opening support act to a moderately parochial crowd of Eels fans, young Daniel Anderson and his small, feathered menagerie were always going to struggle. An able ventriloquist, his routine is better suited to children’s parties than pre-concert crowds.
We wait apprehensively then, as the second act approaches the spotlight. The relief is palpable when Laura Imbruglia emerges to reprise her support slot from the Eels’ 2003 Shootenanny tour. Resisting requests for material from that era, she performs her latest songs – several of which draw inspiration from a recent, soured relationship. Like a female Ben Kweller, Imbruglia’s guitar has a country twang and her lyrics are personal, observational and not without humour. Despite an earlier assertion that “one of the advantages of not being famous is you can play whatever you want” she caves to audience pressure and plays Lettuce & Anarchists from her 2003 debut EP. Laura’s penultimate song, You’re A Parasitic Germ, is the third dedicated to her older ex-lover and a compelling reason to treat musician’s hearts with care.
Also uncomfortably familiar with heartbreak is E; January’s End Times LP was heavily influenced by Eels’ frontman’s divorce. White-clad but for his bandana, trademark sunglasses and not-as-epic-as-circa-Hombre-Lobo-but-still-quite-fierce beard, it is almost surprising then to hear E open with a sweet rendition of Daisies Of The Galaxy. When The Chet joins him on stage to add slide guitar to 3-Speed, it’s clear that tonight’s focus is not recent regrets, but the entire Eels catalogue – a point emphasised by muscular, dirty guitar riffs when the remainder of the quintet walk on for Prizefighter.
“Fuck winter,” announces E, “We’re here to blow some sunshine up your asses!” For those left confused, a cover of The Lovin’ Spoonful’s Summer In The City provides both elucidation and a dancing opportunity. From here, Koool G Murder turns up his bass as new guitarist P-Boo feeds grimy distortion through Tremendous Dynamite; E roaring as they unleash as heavy a sound as the band have ever made. Barely domesticated wild-men revelling amidst the crimson lights and animalistic baying of Fresh Blood, it’s with startling ease then that they slip back into the sweet and lyrical In My Dreams.
Debuting tracks from the forthcoming album, Tomorrow Morning, both the lovestoned Spectacular Girl and gospel party jam Looking Up paint the new LP in a decidedly positive light. Still, the band feels the need to blow even more sunshine about, and rework Gershwin’s Summertime to this end. The soulful classic is punctuated alternately with vocal trills and E scattering an eskyfull of icy poles into the overheating crowd.
While most expect the final encore to be the conspicuously absent Novocaine For The Soul it’s not to be – the lack of a keyboard on stage has bumped the 1996 hit off the set-list. Instead, the show ends as it began, tender and warm. As for E, “Well he sure is having fun / In a magic world.”
NILS HAY
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