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Live Review: Andy Bull + Cub Sport + Lanks - The Gov, Adelaide (16.04.15)

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If you've been even a casual follower of Andy Bull's career over the past few years, you'll know that even when he's not on tour, he's the type of musician to always have something on the go, something creative is always ticking away. We saw it when he made his return with "Keep on Running" in 2013 after taking some time away from playing shows off the back of the Phantom Pains EP. It signalled a shift in his creative direction and yet, instead of isolating fans, it intrigued and went onto be demonstrative of a textured musicality and knack for pop songwriting.

How does it translate live, though? We've seen Andy's live set up grow over the past years; from touring with guitarist Alex Bennison, to expanding to accommodate a larger touring line up in recent tours, it's given the music the opportunity to flourish and be developed further in a live capacity. With this particular tour, the 'Talk Too Much Tour', the crowd sees some favourites given extended intros, slightly different arrangements and we see Andy bring something new to what could be considered a well-oiled set list (especially if you were able to see him play on the Laneway Festival tour).

Supporting on this latest Adelaide visit are Lanks and Cub Sport. Lanks cuts a lone figure on The Gov's stage, armed with just a guitar, pedals and electronic drums. However, the Melbourne performer is an early highlight; watching him co-ordinate the instruments while keeping the crowd wrapped up in his great vocals is impressive and even though he seems quite humbled at the amount of people who have stuck around the stage's vicinity to see him play, the confidence you see coming through his performance is that expected of a performer who has done these rounds many times before.

I feel like the last time I saw Cub Sport play I thought, "Man, these kids are good, but they're young!"...and that was a good few years ago now. During this show, I found myself thinking the same thing. It's been a while since they've played Adelaide, noting that their last show in the city was up on Hindley Street when a gun went off elsewhere nearby. A classic Adelaide experience, really. A tight live band, Cub Sport have that type of live show that is going to draw the crowds in; they're friendly, the music they play is appealing to a wider audience looking for a good time at a show and they know how to work their crowd well. A Beyonce medley dropped perfectly in the set has the crowd hyped up and particularly with the younger demographic represented in the venue, it's like their Christmas had come early.

By the time Andy has joined his band on stage, girls have moved further toward the stage, taking up the best spots they can in front of his synths. I'm not sure when this Andy-Bull-as-sex-symbol-for-teenagers thing took off, but a good part of the entertainment during the headline set came from watching these girls hyperventilate, cling to each other and swoon with each dick joke. As we noted later on though, if he's the type of guy younger girls are flocking to, there may be hope yet.

As we've come to see from Andy as a live performer over the last few years, much of his on stage charm comes not only from his general good-guy nature and humour, but the vocals which have only gotten richer and more appealing. His range soars during the show and while as a whole, I've heard things flow more smoothly in the past, the strong presence Andy normally could bring on his own doesn't dominate that of the band, and vice versa. The expanded line up (including new bass player Luke), as I mentioned before, meant that songs like "Dog" were given a new twist. It got a positive response, but I thought performances of "Loved Like You" and "Nothing Is Wrong" made for some definite set highlights. "Baby I Am Nobody Now", "Keep on Running" and their Tears For Fears cover have become set favourites and went down as such, though "Talk Too Much" was fun to watch; both the crowd and band kicked it up another notch.

When the show is finished, a lot of people head back out into the rainy night, but there's also a large line of fans forming around the front of the stage, where Andy appears shortly after to meet, sign and have photos taken with them. People are leaving huge grins plastered across their faces, giggling over their signed merch, selfies that are no doubt being primed for Instagram posts within seconds of them being taken. It's wonderful to see the appeal of this one guy's music reaching a wider crowd of music lovers as he is, and always has been, one to produce music that is made to be accessible by many.

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Andy hits the following venues on the 'Talk Too Much Tour':

24th April - Unibar, Wollongong
25th April - Cambridge, Newcastle
2nd May - Brightside, Brisbane (U18 matinee & 18+ evening)
8th May - The Rosemount, Perth
9th May - Mojos, Fremantle (SOLD OUT)
12th June - ANU Bar, Canberra
13th June - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney


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