A single chair and three electric guitars stood centre stage at Brisbane's The Outpost Bar (4 February).
The setup was notable due to the lack of a drum kit for what was meant to be the return of the acclaimed live collaboration of two titans of Australian alternative music: singer-songwriter Ed Kuepper and Dirty Three drummer Jim White.However, a sign at the door explained that due to personal circumstances, White had to withdraw from the show at the last minute. It's unfortunate, but Kuepper's promise to carry on meant a sizeable crowd weren't going to miss a performance from one of Brisbane's greatest musical exports.
"I'm obviously not Ed Kuepper," quipped Darren DC Cross, as he took to the stage for his opening set.
What was likely not obvious was Darren's previous life as a member of Gerling, the Sydney trio who melded alternative rock and electronica in the late '90s and early 2000s (and, according to one story Darren told, witnessed a man pee from Brisbane's Story Bridge onto a picnic down below).
These days, Darren has stripped his music down, skilfully playing finger-picked acoustic guitar instrumentals inspired by Englishman Nick Drake and American John Fahey.
Seated with his eyes cast at his fingers on his guitar's fretboard, Darren's thumb plucked droning rhythms mimicking cars on an old gravel road or the chug of a train's engine.
Meanwhile, his fingers slid and jumped across his strings, picking melodies that changed from languid to discordant, evoking the mood in the scenarios hinted at in song titles such as 'Stolen Police Vehicle Down The Great Western Highway'.
For the main performance, Ed Kuepper clutched his 12-string electric guitar close to his body, the strings chiming against his deep, rough voice on opening tune 'The Sixteen Days' from his sophomore solo album 'Rooms Of The Magnificent'.
The set list stretches across Ed's career, all the way back to the very first song he wrote with his Saints bandmate, the late Chris Bailey, 'Messin' With The Kid', which he notes will celebrate its 50th anniversary soon.
Stripped down to just his crunching guitar and dour baritone, the tune hasn't lost its bite with age, conjuring excitement amongst the crowd as he played the song's solo.
It's impressive what Ed can do with just an electric guitar; from a restrained folk melody on 'Pavane' to the psychedelic drone of The Aints' 'Church Of Simultaneous Existence'.
"[The songs are] slightly different to the album version, except for the words and some of the notes," he deadpanned about the sparer arrangements. What they haven't lost is their power, with songs like The Laughing Clowns' 'Eternally Yours' ending in a storm of noise that sent some fans into fits of head-shaking.
Equally impressive is Ed's tenaciousness in the face of hiccups. An airing of 'Collapse Board' – voted the most depressing song of 1980, he proudly noted – proved too powerful for the venue, with the stage lights failing.
As the sound crew quickly worked to bring the light back, Ed continued undaunted by the darkness, swamping the venue in a distorted groove that was accompanied by the clinking rhythm of a fan's bracelets as she clapped along.
Despite a fantastic performance from Ed, it couldn't be helped but to wonder what could've been. Jim White is an exceptional drummer whose explosive style is mesmerising to witness live, but these things can't be helped. However, Ed's announcement that an album by the pair is in the works meant there will be another opportunity to catch this pairing.
Whether solo or accompanied, Ed Kuepper is a treasured performer always worth catching.
