08 April 2010 (gig)
10 April 2010
A couple of weeks ago I made the comment that John Butler Trio’s latest album ‘April Uprising’ was music made to be heard live. How I was proven right.
It was interesting to see how young the crowd was for the group, considering they’ve been around since the mid 90’s. This gave the Olympia Theatre an energy I haven’t experienced too many times. Opening act ‘The Mama King’ got one of those rare electric responses and seemed genuinely touched at the crowd’s enthusiasm.
John Butler Trio are a band every music fan should go out of their way to see at least once. These guys are not only fantastic musicians, but put on a hell of an entertaining live performance also. A vast arrange of musical instruments including their native didgeridoo, banjo and about 63 different guitars (I’m exaggerating a little), are on show and keep the audience guessing.
The highlight of the night is without a doubt John Butler’s solo performance of ‘Ocean’. It’s a spellbinding piece of music that grasps your attention and mesmerises you as he flies up and down the fret board, while creating the illusion that there is a 6 piece band playing with him. The performance got those that were sitting to their feet to applaud the masterpiece they just witnessed.
My only qualm with the band is that John likes to explain what some of the songs are about, and every now and then brings up the revolution and peace, which can be quite grating. It may seem a strange criticism, but I like to take my own meanings from songs and nothing bugs me more than political speeches during concerts. This, however, is minor compared to the performance they gave. Go and see them.
