The Paper Kites at the Metro Theatre 31/8/13 - Live Review

The Paper Kites are a five-piece folk band from Melbourne, but you could be mistaken for thinking they’ve spent their whole life in a hut in a forest somewhere, working away at creating what has now become their debut album, States. Masters of serenity, the quintet emerged from their forest hut for an intimate show at Sydney’s Metro Theatre.

The Kites were ably supported by two of Aussie folk’s most promising up-and-coming artists. First to the stage was Robbie Miller, a young Indigenous artist whose solo enchantments have recently garnered recognition from the likes of Triple J Unearthed, leading him to take out their National Indigenous Music Award in 2013. His tinny acoustic strums were accompanied by his surprisingly angelic voice, warming the vibes of the fast-filling theatre. The 24-year old pricked the ears of the audience with a wholehearted performance highlighted by his heartbreaking and award winning ‘Don’t Go Walking Away’. Check him out and download his tunes at triplejuneathed.net.au.

The crowd swelled in anticipation as Jordan Watson and Ben Riley graced the stage. The duo creates Georgia Fair, bringing a tinge of country to an emphatic folk rock performance. Friends since high school, Watson and Riley go together like peas and carrots, sharing an obvious connection that brings a special shade to their setlist. Held together by crowd favourite ‘Picture Frames’, the duo busted out some full-blooded acoustic strumming, electric plucking and even a clarinet cameo during the more intimate songs. Considering the lack of drums or bass, Georgia Fair still created a wholesome and intriguing performance, showcasing one of Australia’s most underrated young bands.

The cheers/roars/screams/squeals were deafening as The Paper Kites emerged from the shadows of the sidestage and took their places. With their debut album, States, released only one day earlier, much of the crowd was completely unaware of the pristine and untested new songs. Nevertheless, the animated spectators gave the band their undivided attention, sometimes as quiet as a hush but at a moment’s notice roaring into a wall of sound. The atmosphere, was, to say the least, intimate, fitting perfectly in with the delicate drum taps of Josh Bentley and bass hums of Sam Rasmussen.

After a somewhat anticlimactic opening, the stage lights flashed red for the roaring rolls of Young North EP highlight ‘A Maker Of My Time’, sending the crowd into a frenzy. The show was curated by lead singer Sam Bentley – and nobody was about to argue with him. He conducted the show without flaw, putting into a practice an obviously well drilled routine. Guitars were exchanged and band members came and left like a well-oiled machine.

With their latest album, Bentley and co-vocalist Christina Lacy haven’t at all expanded sonically – they have simply tweaked their sound to perfection. After obvious suffering of album recording-cabin fever from a band that looked like they were overjoyed to be back in the tour van, their visual show was synchronised to precision – three suspended white balloons were illuminated with serene, almost psychedelic colours. Despite a disappointing lack of well-loved songs from previous EPs, the band made sure that the audience was left absorbed at all moments, most notably in new album tracks such as ‘Gates’ and latest single ‘Young’. Bentley and the other instrumentalists made full utilisation of the slow grow – making sure songs starting with a subtle guitar picking ends with a whole-hearted strum.

Now, we need to talk about that moment. The moment when I thought my eardrums were about to explode.

It only took one line to send the whole crowd into a screaming, fangirling frenzy. “In the morning when I wake”, lullabies Bentley at the beginning of that track, ‘Bloom’ from Woodland EP. The sheer volume and duration of the emphatic emotion was so great that Bentley completely had to stop midway into the first verse and ask for some quiet. The song resumed, this time accompanied by the voices of a thousand adoring fans. A magical moment.

The set continued, rolling through the highlights of the new album. The crowd tempo reached its highest during the louder songs (something everyone had been yearning for) but reached an emotional peak during ‘St Clarity’, driven by that soothing banjo courtesy of Jesus lookalike Dave Powys.

Surprisingly, the concert reached an underwhelming close after a surprising encore consisting of a little-known Feist cover led by the charming voice of Lacy, but the magic had already been woven and nothing could take the shine off a perfectly constructed concert. ‘Can I be close to you?’ Sam Bentley asks in the chorus of ‘Bloom’. Yes, Sam, you can.

Review by Ruben Seaton

Photos by Cameron D’Antone more here

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