Once upon a time, the people of the Central Coast had to go to Newcastle or Sydney to see major musical acts. Sure, that’s only an hour or so up or down the freeway, but it made midweek gigs with friends challenging. Now it seems we’re spoiled for choice, with venues like Drifter’s Wharf, The Art House Wyong, and Laycock Street Theatre all doing their bit. For mine, Avoca Beach Theatre is leading the charge. In her welcome speech Beth Hunter, who runs the theatre with her husband Norman, told us of the way the theatre’s objective of telling Australian stories has expanded over the years. More than just a movie theatre, it now hosts comedians and live music. Once they aimed to host three live performances a month. Now they aim for three every week. After recent renovations, it’s better than ever. It’s still intimate, holding less than 300 music lovers. It’s retained its heritage charm, but the new chairs are a bit plusher. We’ve even got cup holders.
It’s the sort of place you want to see gigs at. So after years of thinking I wanted to see Ben Lee but never actually buying the tickets, I followed through. It doesn’t hurt that I think Ben’s recent albums are some of his best. The songs from I’M FUN! and Love is the New Rebellion are among my favourites, so maybe it’s not a bad thing that I waited until this stage of his career to see a show. The last couple of years have also brought us DJ DadBod, Ben’s alter-ego and the perfect support act. He delivered a set of fun and quirky mash-ups, singing and dancing along with such joy. It was beautiful to watch.
After a quick break he was back in Ben mode, delivering an eclectic and surprising set with plenty of twists and turns. There were the hits of course, including songs like “Gamble Everything For Love” and “Something Borrowed, Something Blue” that I haven’t thought about for years. A couple who danced to “Love Me Like the World is Ending” at their wedding were celebrating their wedding anniversary at the show. The lyrics resonated so much more knowing what it meant to them. They didn’t take Ben up on his offer of recreating the dance on stage, but I can imagine their happy smiles hearing him sing this song that meant so much to them. I loved the chance to hear newer material that I love like “Crooked Tree” and “Arsehole.” He even gave us a sneaky listen to some beautiful material from an album that will drop next year. After some audience requests, he showed he’s not too proud to go back to the vault, treating a long-time fan to a rendition of “Poison 1080” from the Noise Addict days. That same self-effacing charm saw him launching into songs other artists wrote about him. They weren’t all flattering (Google efforts from The Chaser and The Ataris to hear what I mean), but they were so much fun.
Ben crammed a lot of music into the evening, but he also put so much of himself into the performance. Avoca Beach Theatre is one of those places that brings the audience and performer together in a shared space. There isn’t the traditional divide that exists in larger venues, and Ben seemed to relish that. He noticed when the people clapping along petered out, and heard comments the crowd made. He told us stories of his life and where the songs came from. This is exactly the sort of show I love. If I just want to hear the music, I’ll stay home and listen to a CD. This more personal experience was so much better.
As Ben delivered the one-two punch of “We’re All In This Together” and “Catch My Disease” I started to think there’d be no encore. Where do you go from there? We could certainly leave happy, but surely it’d feel weird for him to just leave without playing the adult game of peek-a-boo we all know and love! I needn’t have worried. It was time for another mash-up and apologies that he’d forgotten his merch. But not to worry, he had Iced VoVos instead! Watching Ben dance down the aisles with his silver platter of classic Aussie bikkies, then don a tinselled rainbow cape for a final boogie, was the most wholesome and perfect way to end this fabulously off-the-wall night of entertainment. Ben still has a few shows left on his Ben Lee vs the Collapse of the Music Industry tour. If you can get some tickets, make sure you don’t procrastinate as I’ve done for years. Get yourself to one of the following gigs:
6 October 2023 – The Baroque Room, Gundungurra and Darug Country/Katoomba
7 October 2023 – Tallagandra Hill Winery, Candariro/Gundaroo
13 October 2023 – Northcote Social Club, Wurundjeri Country/Northcote
14 October 2023 – Kindred Bandroom, Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung and Bunurong Country/Footscray
16 November 2023 – ALTAR, Nipaluna/Hobart
19 November 2023 – Du Cane, Kanamaluka Country/Launceston
Image source: own photos