Kate Miller-Heidke

It is two days later and I just can’t Shake It, no I don’t get the feeling that I look absurd, I just can’t shake that buzzing feeling I get after a good show.

It was a Friday night, the energy is right, another week down in history. It was warm enough to wear a dress, another tick. I was at the Prince of Wales Hotel in St Kilda, a magic music venue, tick number three. Meagan Washington, The Boat People and Kate Miller-Heidke, tick tick tick!

Meagan Washington was already on stage when I arrived, thankfully it appeared as if she had just begun, purchasing a drink to occupy my hands and shake the working week away from my dancing feet. I found myself slightly impatiently waiting at the bar, because the vibe from the stage was irresistibly attractive. Her stage presence could honestly be felt before it was seen. She had onstage with her an entourage of merry men, who treated the small crowd to an assortment of instrumental treats, including one harmonica solo that caused an eruption of applause mid-song from the astounded audience members. Her sound is Disney meets Indie Rock, really accessible yet peppered with an alternative flavour.

The delicious Indie group best known for their tongue twister song Awkward Orchid Orchard are The Boat People, a Brisbane four piece who are gathering quite the cult following. Growing in popularity means the guys are in tune with the eb and flow of a live show. Pushing the audience when they needed it and backing off in acknowledgement of a group of people waiting for the main act The Boat People were the right choice for warming up the, now, near capacity band room. Announcing they were about to play their hit Awkward Orchid Orchard gave the crowd a ticket to sing and move along with the funky little number. Rounding off their set with a few other tracks from their new album Chandeliers the boys gracefully left the stage in order for the instrument and scenery changeover.

With a few false alarms of rising screams and applause the real Kate Miller-Heidke eventually took residency behind her keyboard on stage, and the screams and applause were still just as consistent. The demand for artists to be entertainers as well as good musicians has seen some performers fall by the wayside, Kate Miller steps up to the plate as though it was never a challenge, appearing comfortable in her own skin and on stage she is intriguingly natural. Interjecting her set list with anecdotes, from tours and shows, she also proves her worth as a story teller.

With three EPs and two albums as credits to her name, it must become increasingly harder to choose appropriate songs for a set list. Kate’s set list on the night of launching her new album was hard to fault, including a delectable array of songs from Little Eve and Curiouser . She also found time to slip in a cover of the Johnny Farnham rock classic You’re The Voice.

The audience was also fortunate enough to have Kate perform on guitar a rare delight she claims to have not tried since she was 16, either that was a ‘stage story’ or she is just naturally multi talented, she carried voice just as well as she strummed out the little number including audience participation and all.

Finishing her set on latest single Shake It , I willed the crowd to shut-up and not coax her back on stage, because it would be hard to top a moment like that . Unfortunately my ESP must not be in good working order because they did not settle down at all until she returned to the stage. Also unfortunately I think I was right, though she did come back with a couple of favourites including finishing on one of my personal favourites Don’t Even Know My Name, it still didn’t match the energy that Shake It produced. Thankfully the ‘Shake It-Energy’ was enough to continue pulsating through the crowd creating a buzz that lasted.

Sharing the night with a couple of Kate Miller Heidke fans and a Californian friend who had barely heard of her before he knew me, the unanimous consensus was ‘mesmerising from top to tail’.

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