“There will be no rolling on the floor in golden hair extensions this time around”, warned avant-garde pop genius Patrick Wolf ahead of his acoustic show at The Forum, “I’m more demure these days.”
Wolf’s stripped back show celebrates his forthcoming album Sundark and Riverlight a double album full of fresh takes on his best work from the past decade. Wolf has built and sustained a huge fan base around the world and the Melbourne branch were thrilled to see him in an intimate setting with acoustic and classical versions of the songs they love.
Supporting was student of music herself, Sophia Brous. Her concoction of sixties sounds and fusion of jazz, folk and soul was a wonderful listening experience. She and her band simply did their thing on stage with an array of instruments such as an accordion, keyboard, bassoon, and at one point using their bodies as percussion. The trio did an exceptional job of captivating the crowd as they streamed in and made the stage their own.
As projection began of images including home videos, Elizabethan dance moves, guns, flares, and horses, the packed out Forum was deathly quiet waiting for Wolf to grace the stage.
His arrival after minutes of silence was in a beautiful outfit accessorised with a golden spiky crown and glittery platform ballet shoes. It took a few songs for Wolf to warm into the setting, but his bashful charm was lovely and within no time he was joking, telling stories and owning the space.
Traditional instruments such as violin, harp, oboe and piano were beautifully used in Wolf’s contemporary tracks. The instrument front and centre however, was Wolf’s famous, exceptionally stunning voice which never fails to take a breath away.
The classically trained performer was able to show impeccable skill in this intimate setting, particularly on the harp which was so beautifully played in the tear jerker ‘The Wolf Song’. Wolf dedicated it to a friend in the audience who first heard it in his bedroom when he was just sixteen and about to run away from home. It was anecdotes such as this that made sure each individual in the room was emotionally invested in the evening.
Wolf pushed himself and his band with spontaneity and live recorded loops. When this didn’t go to plan, they adapted quickly to deliver the best version of the song possible. With the overwhelming love in the room, it never mattered, because the crowd were fully in his fashionable pocket from the get go.
Just as Sundark and Riverlight will be an album full of Wolf’s best work, his Melbourne show was full of some absolute belters including ‘Tristan’, ‘Paris’, ‘Bluebells’, ‘Hard Times’, ‘The City’ and crowd-clapping favourite ‘The Magic Position’. Throughout the show, Wolf spoke of his genuine love for Melbourne and it feeling like a second home, a statement without any taste of obligatory.
This tour is a celebration of ten years of development and growth for Wolf, and a way to say thank you to his many fans. After a gracious encore, he was reluctant to leave saying, “I’d better go… but I just want to stay here”, a feeling of affection and respect reciprocated by the full house at the Forum.
– Tess Armstrong
