It is not often that someone needs an introduction, but Alain Johannes is an exception.
Initially forming a school band with members of and parallel to the nascent Red Hot Chili Peppers, Alain has forged his own career just off the axis of grunge.A musical zelig, he has been a fairly regular gigging sideman playing a significant part in the successful careers of other artists.
Without going down the rabbit hole of Alain's exhaustive CV, it's fair to say that despite the ubiquity of his presence, he has maintained relative greater obscurity and this could be why he is not playing somewhere other than the intimate environs of Adelaide institution and current underdog, the affectionately named Cranker (20 June) – which begs the question what is the measure of success?
Local instrumental four-piece OKO are the warm-up for the main event with their performance of paced Kraut and progressive rock having more in common with Crazy Horse than King Crimson.
Although their noodling, psychedelic, meditative wall of sound is incongruous with the later main solo acoustic set, they immediately win over the assembled audience.
Johannes opens with two songs from his 'Not On This Earth' EP that set the tone for what follows, the title track and then 'Eyes To The Sky'.
However, the third song diverts from these brooding, atmospheric beginnings with definitely the lightest song in the set 'Return To You', the first of three consecutive songs from the recently reissued 'Spark' LP that this tour could be seen to be promoting including the fingers-across-the-fretboard-like-spiders workout of 'Gentle Ghost'.
The autobiography of 'Unfinished Plan' is made even more heart rending in this sparse performance, before the cigar box guitar Alain has thus far played is exchanged for a regular six-string and this collection of contemporaneous songs continues with 'Kaleidoscope' from the improvisational 'Fragments And Wholes Vol. 1'.
Having got to know Alain playing the smaller instrument for the first portion of this set, the six-string initially appears out of proportion. Given the stage setup with the three guitars, including the as yet unused 12-string, lined up in size beside him, I can't help but consider the tale of 'Goldilocks and the Three Bears' transposed to this setting and Alain's role in choosing the instrument to get it 'just right'.
Preceding a dig far into his back catalogue for the first of several Eleven songs performed, he name drops the band's original drummer Jack Irons who left to join Pearl Jam and his replacement Soundgarden's Matt Cameron (Pearl Jam's current drummer since 1998).
Although Alain did mention dropping four songs off the album 'Thunk' in resentment, it seems unlikely the vitriol of 'Seasick Of You' is directed towards his former bandmate.
Arriving at the exact midpoint of the set, the melancholic 'Welcome' comes across almost as a musical interlude, separating another Eleven song, 'You Are My Diamond' on which Alain's crooning yarl comes to the fore before the first of his 'Desert Sessions' songs, 'Holey Dime'.
Alain takes up the 12-string guitar for 'If Morning Comes' the sole song performed from his last album 'Hum' from 2020 before 'Make God Jealous', a display of his musical virtuosity in this extended flamenco like guitar recital. The 12-string guitar portion of the set concludes with another Eleven song, 'Why', before Alain once again takes up the cigar box guitar.
'Hangin' Tree' is a song better known as being by Queens Of The Stone Age, but Alain tells us he's going to play the OG version first written for one of the 'Desert Sessions' along with the song that follows, the melancholic 'Making A Cross'.
When Alain announces "a song for Chris," we all know who he is talking about and 'Disappearing One' from the Soundgarden singer's solo debut album (helmed by Alain and his late musical and life partner Natasha Shneider) is in this context a tribute, the lyrics taking on an eerie new meaning since his passing.
Alain manages the awkwardness and play-acting of attempting to, but not being able to leave the Cranker stage to indicate an encore better than most, commenting that it has been "a beautiful evening to remember".
For his final song he returns to the 'Spark' LP to perform the opening song 'Endless Eyes', the poignancy of the lyric 'every day I am resurrected,' a show of Alain's optimism given the tragedy and loss he has endured thus far.
Justifiably captivating in this setting and amiable from the start, Alain Johannes has given those present something very special – an unadorned, stripped performance from a gracious artist of the highest calibre.
