Live @ Roche Estate, Pokolbin – 18 November 2017

I’m not sure what it is about Hunter Valley winery gigs, but so often they go hand-in-hand with rain. Somewhere along the way my excitement about the show turns in to trepidation and relentless weather checks.

Roche Estate was already a muddy swamp by the time I arrived on Saturday. It didn’t take long for the ground, and us, to get a whole lot wetter. It poured virtually nonstop for the first two acts. My raincoat quickly became as soaked as the rest of me. My feet were squelching in my shoes. I’ve had rain at concerts before, but never so much that I was still soaked to my skin by the time I got home.

It’s a cliché to suggest rain didn’t dampen the crowd’s enthusiasm, because it was certainly unpleasant. But the music was so outstanding that it actually seemed worth the downpour. I last saw Thirsty Merc playing acoustically. Before that, Rai Thistlethwayte was playing solo. I hadn’t seen the Merc is all their plugged-in splendour for ten long years. So I was thrilled to see these guys playing a set for the real fans. They’ve had so many hits over the years, certainly enough to fill their six-song set. While songs like “Someday, Someday” and “In the Summertime” featured, they were interspersed with killer album tracks like “Claude Monet” and “I Wish Somebody Would Build a Bridge (So I Could Get Over Myself).” Their set was full of energy and appreciation. While the crowd was relatively small by that point, they lapped up what Thirsty Merc gave us.

I worried I might spend The Calling’s set simply waiting for “Wherever You Will Go,” but the California act were a real surprise package for me. It turns out thanks to Spotify’s suggestions, I knew more songs than I thought. However, even the ones I weren’t familiar with didn’t feel like fillers. Alex Band is one dynamic front man. I barely took my eyes off him. His presence made their set so enjoyable.

Lifehouse continued the nostalgia with a tight set peppered with more of those Spotify favourites. I couldn’t fault any of the musicians, but after being so impressed by The Calling, this set felt a little lacking to me. Maybe some jetlag or a busy tour schedule has caught up with them, because it felt a little “by the numbers.” Bass guitarist Bryce Soderberg’s cover of “You’re The Voice” was great fun though, and the band’s biggest hits “You and Me” and “Hanging By a Moment” also had everyone singing along.

You want the headliners to take things up a notch and boy did Live deliver, bursting onto the stage with “All Over You.” The set drew mainly from early albums, especially the breakthrough Throwing Copper, and like so many fans I lapped it up. “I Alone” was an absolute standout; I wish I could have bottled the electricity when we all let loose. “White, Discussion” might have been penned decades ago, but it resonated strongly as I thought of the current political climate. “Selling the Drama” went off just as much as it should. Even debut album Mental Jewelry got a look-in with “Pain Lies on the Riverside.” “Lakini’s Juice” from Secret Samadhi was positively electric.

Live is a band that rocks hard, but they’re every bit as powerful in the quieter moments. An acoustic cover of Johnny Cash’s “Walk the Line” was breathtaking. “Turn My Head,” the tender ballad from Secret Samadhi and one of my favourite Live tracks, was so moving. I saw more than a few misty eyes when the band played Audioslave track “I Am The Highway” in dedication to Chris Cornell.

The seven-year break hasn’t made Live rusty. They sound so tight and Ed Kowalczyk is every bit as magnetic as he ever was. He is such a charismatic performer, a kind of Messiah figure who is utterly mesmerising to watch. I’ve always admired him, but after experiencing the show he puts on I’d put him within the top five front men I’ve ever seen. He was that good.

Despite Ed’s importance, Live is a brothership and that seems stronger than ever after the band’s taken an extended break from one another. There’s a renewed sense of energy about Live these days. I saw them a couple of times in the late ‘90s and early ‘00s, but I can’t remember feeling so blown away by their performance. Ed let slip that they’re planning another Aussie tour for March. It can’t come soon enough. Because quite simply, this was for me the best gig of the year.

Image source: own photos