Gareth Liddiard

Seeing Gareth Liddiard in this acoustic context was a real eye opener to what an amazing songwriter he really is. When he fronts the Drones his lyrics are full of bile and fire, and at the best of times they can be lost amongst the dirty blues gutter rock of the band.

This is not necessarily a bad thing, though, in this different context I got more a feel of what his songs were about and I could fully engage myself with the songs more.

In between each song he was quite open about the stories behind the tunes. The set mainly consisted of acoustic versions of Drones songs, such as ‘Jezebel’, ‘I Don’t Want to Change’, and ‘Your Acting’s Like The End Of The World’, Gareth lyrics metaphorical with a distinct Australian slant to them.

In an interview Gareth said he didn’t set out to make an overtly Australian album it was just a natural progression when writing the songs.

The obscurity to Liddiard’s lyrics for me is what makes him such an engaging lyricist - he is always making you think and question on what the songs are about. In this intimate setting it was great because I was able to stand up the front and fully appreciate his amazing voice and songs.

So now that I have seen Gareth in both acoustic and rock settings it was such an awesome contrast and I can now fully appreciate him more as a performer. Bring on the album, it is highly anticipated.

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