Friday night at The Gov (3 July) and Tim Rogers was set to take the stage with The Bamboos, which he did after Port Adelaide act The Rememberz opened proceedings.
They where not what I was expecting; I quickly made a mental note to find out more about them. They started their set as a trio and then brought out a bass clarinetist, which made my partner happy as she used to play the bass clarinet. This was not something I was expecting, but those in the crowd who knew about the band were already cheering.
It was hard to tell who was the lead singer; was it Melissah Marie or was it Jason Mannix. Both sang lead and back-up depending on what the song asked for. As the songs where short this didn’t seem to really matter and it added to the intrigue of the band and the crowd seemed to really enjoy them anyway.
Click here for photos from the show.
They had a sound that could be likened to the old-pub rock that you would expect to hear playing in the corner of the pub on a lazy, Sunday afternoon as well as a blues and jazz feel. Their music would not have been out of place in one of those old-fashioned men’s smoking rooms that you see in the classic Bond movies. It was smooth and soulful with just enough class to warm the crowd.
The Rememberz - Image © Shayarah BrownThey had a drummer with them, which I found out was a new introduction to the band. I don't know if he's a permanent addition to the band, but his solo was a particular highlight of their set for me; it would have made Kram, of all people, proud. It did seem a little out of place with the rest of the songs they were performing, but it was a real crowd starter, and was placed in the set at just the right time.
The second to last song featured the bass clarinet again, but this time he made the song have an Arabic feel to it. It really reminded me of a snake charmer and it was really great. There was a short break as they changed the stage around and in this time the crowd really picked up.
By the time Tim Rogers and The Bamboos came on stage the crowd seemed to have doubled in size and this was a great thing to see. Tim Rogers started the first song of the set, 'Blow Your Whistle'. This was a great song to start with as it was fast-paced and made you want to get up and move.
He did call for the crowd to dance, but with the amount of people who where at The Gov, this wasn’t as easy as you would think. There where some people dancing or moving around to the beat of the songs, but the main person with all the right moves that I could see was Tim Rogers and he has moved like Mick Jagger.
'S.U.C.C.E.S.S.' was the second song on the list and this is when The Bamboos introduced their lead singer, Kylie Auldist, who had a sound like Aretha Franklin and Mahalia Barnes all rolled into one. There where a couple of times where I couldn’t tell if it was Tim or Kylie singing; it turned out to be Tim as he has such an awesome vocal range.
Tim Rogers - Image © Shayarah BrownThe chemistry between Tim and Kylie was just that great I couldn't help but feel as though I was back in the '60s with James Brown and Aretha Franklin heading a bill together and this was the highlight of the night.
All the songs where catchy; song wise one of the biggest highlights of the night was the mash-up of 'Me And A Devil/Shake It Off' as it received the biggest crowd response. It was a really surprising highlight for me as I am not a Taylor Swift fan.
The set consisted of 15 songs in the main set list and a two-song encore which featured the only You Am I song of the night, 'Heavy Heart' and the first song that Tim Rogers and The Bamboos collaborated on, 'I Got Burned'.
The Bamboos' Lance Ferguson - Image © Shayarah BrownAll in all there was a chilled, relaxed vibe throughout both bands and in the words of the second song of the night an absolute success and not what I was expecting having grown up listening to Tim Rogers in You Am I; but this was what made it so successful.
Click here for photos from the show.
