The young man with the bushy beard and the stoner good looks, one Angus Stone, kicked off the Australian leg of his tour to a sold out Enmore Theatre this past Thursday night.
With his musical amalgam of folk, country-rock and slightly psychedelic guitar musings, the bustling crowd was eager to hear what this solo performance would deliver.
Angus and his crew launched into the first track off his new solo record Broken Brights, kicking it off with the acoustic strumming of the mandolin, “River Love” – with its lyrical mentions of wild horses, roses, and San Francisco – earmarked what this show would be about.
This somewhat emotionally fractured song brought to mind a long forgotten Black Crowes and a time gone past and you could feel an attachment to the West Coast sound (that everyone seems to be drawing on these days…). Although by looking at the hair on stage it was uncertain what year it was this evening.
This song, and Stone’s appearance on stage, was met with female screams of delight. The stage backdrop was a faux forest and there was even a reproduction of a campfire glowing with flowing paper and light. Overhead there were lights that mimicked stars and you could feel this was to be a night of dreamy folk rock with some far off thunder and lightning occasionally invigorating the proceedings.
Throughout the 90 minute set the music veered from folk to a muted type of Crazy Horse rock and roll. “Bella”, the Angus and Julia Stone song was played and adored by the Enmore gathering and “The Wolf And The Butler”, with Stone on acoustic and harmonica, was one that perfectly suited the campfire setting on the stage.
The other side of the coin was the chance for Stone and his band of young men to break into some electric guitar rambles which they ably pulled off on the darkish “It Was Blue” and “Bird On The Buffalo”. There was also a sprinkling of that Laurel Canyon sound (familiar of Jonathan Wilson) in the playing throughout.
Angus Stone and Julia Stone have both veered off on their own path of creativity for the time being and they both have succeeded, even if neither of them has actually made anything too much removed from their albums together.
Angus Stone has electrified the music a tad more of late than his sister and infused it with more energy. With both of the Stones’ music you know what you will be given and this fulfilled the needs of the swaying and engaged audience at the Enmore
