Clare Bowditch

On a chilly Sunday night, an almost sold-out crowd clad in winter coats and tightly wrapped scarves gathered outside the Corner Hotel. As the doors opened they spilled in, eager to see Clare Bowditch reveal her Winter Secrets.

The challenge of warming up the Melbourne crowd was undertaken by local songwriter Guy Blackman. A solo figure on the Corner’s side stage, Blackman delivered rhyming pop-folk songs with a serious sense of awkwardness. With eyes darting and hands nervously scratching head, Blackman was shortly joined by three more musicians, and the 75% bespectacled band played out a short set of offbeat pop-ballads that left the crowd just a little defrosted.

As more people filtered in, the main stage was taken by Hot Little Hands. Fronted by the Feeding Set’s Tim Harvey, Hot Little Hands had the crowd just a little puzzled by their headless bass and electronic drum kit. Their brooding synth-rock was contrasted with Harvey’s wispy vocals, a combination that had most feet tapping.

At the conclusion of Hot Little Hand’s hour long set, Blackman and band returned to the smaller stage, this time playing livelier repertoire. From behind his keyboard, Blackman oozed a nerdy Ben Folds-esque air that was completed by song titles referencing female names.

Dressed as the white witch of Narnia, Clare Bowditch emerged to cast her spell over the audience. However, unlike the white witch who enforced a never-ending winter, from the moment Clare stepped on stage, her charisma and good-humour melted the room.

A comedic opening number set the tone for the rest of the night as mesmerising ballads were interwoven with stories, jokes and light-hearted banter. Slipping seamlessly between goofiness and grace, Clare had the audience roaring with laughter as she told tales involving camels and garage sales, and totally silent when she played stripped back versions of songs such as When The Lights Went Down and Lips Like Oranges. Twice jokingly referring to herself as a non-professional, Clare was at home on the stage and at one with the audience as her charm affected all present.

Clare was joined onstage at different times by guests including Feeding Set members Tim Harvey and Libby Chow, “the plectrum girl”, two competition winners who accompanied Clare on their own rendition of Your Other Hand and approximately half the Bowditch family who joined in for From Little Things Big Things Grow. Also filling out the sound was Clare’s loop pedal, old-school Casio keyboard and a teapot, which featured as an instrument during Between The Tea and The Toast.

Striking the balance between intimacy and fun, Clare’s ability to engage with the audience through humour, storytelling and song resulted in a show both uplifting and tender.

Share this review on Facebook