I don’t often travel interstate for gigs. But when Andrew McMahon announced his current Australian tour and the Sydney date clashed with previously made plans, I knew I had to head to Meeanjin/Brisbane. I’m a relative newcomer to Andrew’s music, discovering it through a friend in the early days of the pandemic. In a dark time, sinking my teeth into his exhaustive back catalogue brought colour into my world. I listened to little else for months. When I was at my angstiest, there was Something Corporate. When I needed hope, there was the lighter indie-pop of his Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness material. I thought Everything in Transit, from his Jack’s Mannequin days, was one of the most exciting albums I’d ever heard. I’ve always been of the belief that it doesn’t matter when you get into an artist’s music. It’s there when you need it. And if you’re lucky, you get to join long-term fans in a gig like Wednesday night’s show at The Triffid in Brisbane and feel like part of a community.
I must admit I didn’t twig when Heavenshe was announced as Andrew’s support, but I got pretty excited when I realised this was the new moniker of Tonight Alive vocalist Jenna McDougall. What a brilliant reintroduction to this artist. We got to catch up on her new material and take a trip down Memory Lane with a couple of Tonight Alive classics. With just an acoustic guitar they sounded a little different to the way they did way back then, but I’ve always appreciated hearing songs stripped back to their purest forms. Speaking of appreciation, I’ve got to give a shout-out to the punters at the Triffid. They probably didn’t know most of this material, but they listened captivated and applauded enthusiastically. What an incredible bunch of humans. After hearing so many crowds talk over support acts, it was so refreshing to be amongst people who were so receptive to new music. Needless to say, I’ll be checking out Hevenshe’s music after this beautiful set.
Often when you get into an artist late in their career, you miss out on intimate gigs like Andrew’s set at The Triffid. So many years in they’ve already graduated to the big arenas or stadiums. I am so thankful that he remains underground here in Australia, at least for now. While he was up on stage, there was no barrier so he could easily chat to those of us in the front few rows between songs. He could hear the people who’d get excited when they heard the first few bars of their favourite tracks and acknowledge their joy. We felt like friends gathering around a piano to hear some tunes rather than punters at a gig.
I’ve always been a sucker for an acoustic show, so I really appreciated the simplicity of this gig. Just a man and a piano sharing songs and stories with us all. The set was incredible, a celebration of his entire career, although he joked that he probably should have played more than one track from his forthcoming album. Perhaps that’s for another tour. From my position in the second row, it seemed like we were all singing along with every word, although we joined in the woah-ohs of “Fire Escape” and the fuck yeahs of “Holiday from Real” with extra gusto. I saw people wiping away tears in “Swim,” a song that’s helped so many of us, including myself, through hard times. Hearing heavier tracks like “Straw Dog” and “Punk Rock Princess” broken down was a revelation. It all was.
And because we were good, because Andrew assured us it would only happen if we were, we got “Konstantine,” the nearly 10-minute epic from the Something Corporate days. Always requested but rarely played, it was so special. Closing out with the joyous “La La Lie,” I struggled to think how the show could have been better. You can never hear anything you want when an artist has such an exhaustive back catalogue, but this show certainly came close.
I mentioned before that I feel it doesn’t matter when you come to an artist’s music, it’ll be there for you when the time is right. I saw this gig with my best friend in the world, Lisa. She’d heard a couple of Andrew’s tracks but was pretty unfamiliar with his back catalogue. But she decided to go to the show anyway, trusting my judgement. She came out a fan. While she didn’t know the majority of the songs, she found herself so engaged by them. I am so thrilled that like my friend introduced me to Andrew’s music a couple of years ago, I could do the same for her. I am so grateful that she’s open-minded enough to just go and see what it’s all about. And that she’s selfless enough to give me the set list she caught, because she knows it’ll mean so much to me. Experiencing this show with her made it even more special.
When you travel for a gig, you want a show like this. When you stand up for a gig, even though you’re past 40 and feel too old for standing floor gigs, you want a show like this. I might have been late to the party, but you can bet I won’t miss another Andrew McMahon tour. If you’re in Eora/Sydney, you can catch him tonight at The Factory.
Images: Lauren Katulka and Lisa Mayer